Of Origins and Romance
by Winthrop1888
Summary: An origin story of how Peter got to Neverland and how he was so close to the fairies. The story of Peter and his childhood best friend, Claire. Eventually comes back to the events of the 2007 film.
1. Chapter 1

"Wait up Peter!" I yelled as I chased my best friend out of the school building. All of a sudden he stopped and turned around. Unable to stop myself in time, I ran right into him. We both fell to the ground and Peter cracked up laughing. I started to laugh but I felt a pain in my head from hitting the pavement. As soon as it came, I felt it vanish almost immediately. Peter stopped laughing and looked at me with sudden concern.

"Are you okay, Claire?" he asked. I smiled at him and told him that I was fine. His concern disappeared and was replaced by his silly 11-year-old grin. It was moments like these when I thought that he would never grow up. That thought was absurd, though. Everyone grows up; I just wished sometimes that we didn't. I liked being an eleven year old kid.

We walked the rest of the way back to our apartment building laughing about the funny things that happened in our classes that day. We said good bye and went into our respective apartments across from each other.

* * *

As soon as I walked through the door, I regretted it. If my mother's screaming wasn't enough, the stench of alcohol sealed the deal. My mother was drunk and in a bad mood. Deciding not to face my mom like this, I stepped back out into the hallway and perched myself on the bench against the wall.

I eventually slunk down and laid across the bench on my back facing the ceiling. It was a good opportunity for me to think.

I knew that I was coming to see things differently now. In one of her more sober moments my mother had told me that I was "changing". I understood; I had read enough books about how girls become women. I knew it was all a part of the one thing I feared: growing up. For example, I found myself thinking about Peter a lot. I noticed, recently, how good looking he was. I was hard not to notice. I'd never tell him that though. It didn't all seem normal though. I found that I couldn't injure myself. If I got hurt I would feel a pull deep in my stomach and then the pain was gone. Cuts vanished and bruises disappeared. I thought about when I had hit my head on the pavement earlier. I felt the impact but it was gone as soon as it had come.

The sound of Peter yelling broke me out of my revere.

"No!" he screamed. "I won't grow up! I don't want to start thinking about older people things! I want to be a kid forever!" It was a typical argument with the Pans. Peter loved being wild and free but his parents only wanted another business man like his brother.

"This is unfair! I'm not going to work with you and I'm not leaving school!" he yelled. His door flung open and I could see that he had been crying. I got up silently and walked towards the stairs. I motioned for him to follow me which he did after slamming the door to his apartment.

We walked up three flights of rustic stairs until we reached the roof. When the door to the roof had closed, he wrapped his arms around me. We embraced for several minutes and I couldn't help but notice how good it felt to hug him. He pulled away and walked over to sit on the edge of the roof. I sat next to him and waited for him to tell me what happened. We sat in silence for a long time before he finally looked at me.

"They want me to grow up." He said.

"I know." Was all I could think of to say.

"I don't want to. Why can't we just stay like this forever?" he asked. It seemed like an innocent enough question but I had no answer.

After a moment, I said "I guess that's how life works. We are born and we have to grow up and then we die. That's the way it goes." He seemed to ponder this for a moment.

"What if it wasn't? What if there was a place that we never grew up. We could live there forever, you and me." I shook my head, sometimes his imagination was wild. "I'm not crazy." He said more to himself than to me. He stood up and walked a short distance away. I waited a beat and then walked up behind him.

"Not crazy, just really hopeful." I replied.

"She's drunk, isn't she?" Peter turned around and said, changing the subject.

"Yea. I can handle it though." I said to reassure him. I knew he was thinking of the past encounters I'd had with my drunk mother. Once I'd walked in on her and a few of her "friends" having a "party". She tried to knock me out of the window. I had to crawl across the side of the building to Peter's room. Sometimes, when she was really drunk, she would use me as target practice for her bottle throwing skills. If I could dodge them all she might let me sleep in my own bed. If not, the floor was empty… and wet. Needless to say, I was planning to hide until she fell asleep.

"You can stay in my apartment." Peter offered, looking out into the city.

"I know but I will manage. There isn't much more she can do to hurt me."

"You sure?" he asked. I looked him in the eye.

"I promise that she will never hurt me, just like I promise that I will never hurt you." I brushed his shoulder and he pulled me into another hug.

"I promise too."

* * *

A flash of yellow light whizzed by. I was sure I had imagined it when Peter asked:

"Did you see that?" I nodded. It flew by again but this time it stopped in front of Peter.

"So you wanna stay young forever, huh?" it asked. Peter looked confused as if he hadn't heard it.

"He'd like that." I replied almost laughing at the irony. Peter looked at me.

"You understood her?" he asked.

"Of course I did. She spoke English." I said.

"No. All I heard were tiny bells." He told me.

"Well, that's what fairies sound like to mortals." She said. "But maybe not all mortals." She added as she looked at me and winked. The confused look on Peter's face almost cracked me up. I knew I was going crazy now.

"She's a 'fairy.'" I told Peter as I rolled my eyes.

"Hey I saw that." My hallucination said. "I'm not in your imagination! My name is Tinker Bell. I heard your friend say that he wanted to stay young forever and I can help."

"How so?" I asked

"Simple. Do you see that star over there?" she indicated the second star to the right. "That is how we are going to get to Neverland."

"And how do you expect that we are going to get to a star?"

"Faith, trust and pixie dust of course. Come on!" She tugged at Peter's hand and he stood. I followed suit. Tinker Bell flew around the both of us. Please work, I thought as I closed my eyes. I took Peter's hand and felt my feet leave the ground.

Crazy as it seems, when I opened my eyes, I was flying over London straight to a star in the sky. We reached the star and suddenly it was morning.


	2. Chapter 2

We landed in a small clearing in a forest. It was stunningly beautiful, like something out of my dreams. I realized that I was still holding Peter's hand. Struggling to fight the blush rising to my cheeks I let go and walked towards one of the many trees. The bark felt soft but the tree was firm. It was so strange to be here that I was almost sure that I was dreaming. The weird part was that I wasn't.

"Come on." Tinker Bell urged. "There's someone that you have to meet." She led us to a much larger clearing with a huge tree in the middle. She whistled and suddenly a large group of boys came wandering out of the tree from all angles. They came into line in front of us. Then, Tinker Bell flew over to Peter and I.

"Do you really want to never grow up?" she asked. I translated to Peter.

"Of course." Peter replied smiling. This was a dream come true for him.

"You will never see your parents again." She warned. You won't return to London ever. This shall be your home forever." I felt slightly uneasy as I relayed her warning to Peter. When I had finished, his smile widened.

"We won't grow up, Claire! We could be here forever!"

"We will never go home, Peter. Don't you see? No more of our friends, and never see our parents. Wouldn't you miss them?" I asked.

"Would you?" He knew he had me. I'd thought about running away so many times. Peter had even offered to come with me once or twice.

"This is it!" Peter exclaimed. "We can run away and we wouldn't end up in an orphanage if we got caught."

"Orphanages are terrible places." One of the boys piped up, a short pudgy boy with an easy grin.

"They are really awful. Neverland is much better." Another, much thinner, boy added. Tinker Bell must have understood our confusion.

"These are the Lost Boys." She explained. "They are all orphans and runaways. Many of them escaped orphanages themselves. If a child isn't found in 3 weeks, they are brought here."

"Where are the girl orphans?" I asked. "Surely they go unclaimed just as much as boys do."

"They do, but the fairy escorts often have a lot more trouble finding the girls." She began to laugh. "Girls are far too clever to be ensnared by fairies." I was beginning to become impatient.

"So have we been tricked then? You said three weeks before orphans are brought here, we aren't even orphans!" I cried. Tinker Bell nodded.

"Indeed you are not, but the Fairy Council has been watching you two. They find it intriguing that you should wish to be here and to never grow up. It is not a normal mortal request. Many mortals will wish to be younger, which can be expected, but seldom do you see a mortal that wishes to stay young." I nodded my understanding. "Furthermore," she added, "the Council wishes to meet you, if you wish to stay. There is a good chance that we have been waiting for you."

"She wants us to meet the Fairy Council." I told Peter. "But we must decide to stay first." For the first time since our arrival, Peter's smile faltered.

"You don't want to stay do you?" he asked in a whisper. I thought for a moment. I really had no intention of going back. I couldn't really see a downside to this.

"I would love to stay." I said to Peter. He hugged me so tight that I couldn't breathe.

* * *

As we walked to meet the Fairy Council, I explained the story of the Lost Boys to Peter. Tinker Bell helped me to fill in the blanks that she hadn't told me yet. When we had come to a heavily wooded area, Tinker Bell stopped.

"He won't be able to understand them." She told me.

"I know, Tink." I said in reply.

"Unless," she started. Then she flew up to Peter and placed a tiny hand on his forehead. She closed her eyes and sighed. Suddenly, they both began to glow. A few seconds later, she flew back.

"Can you hear me Peter?" she asked tentatively. Peter's eyes widened.

"Yeah." He replied. "What did you do?"

"I granted you the gift of Hearing. It is a gift of the Fairies. There are four of them. Only three of them can be obtained by mortals but it seems that your friend here already had one." Tinker Bell then sprinkled us with some more of the pixie dust and Peter and I began to shrink.

When we had shrunk to Tink's size, I saw how beautiful Tinker Bell really was. Her hair was a glistening blonde color in wavy curls. She wore a body hugging green dress that sparkled. She was truly stunning.

She led us through a hole in the trunk of a large tree and into the presence of thousands of fairies just like her.

"This is them?" a large one asked. He looked to be the leader with his large muscles, short brown hair and fierce blue eyes. He also looked to be very young and had gorgeous deep blue wings. Everything about him was quite beautiful. Many of the boy fairies were good looking, I noted.

"Yes, Prince Sapphire." She replied as she bowed before him.

"Welcome Mortals." He said addressing Peter and I. We remained silent and he laughed. "I almost forgot that mortals can't understand fairies."

"I understood you just fine, Prince Sapphire." I spoke up. "I just had nothing to say." This Prince looked suddenly angry.

"Did you also understand me?" he asked Peter. When Peter nodded, he turned to Tinker Bell. "You gave two mortals the gift of Hearing? Two mortals that you barely knew?" Tinker Bell looked suddenly frightened, so I spoke up.

"I already understood her. Only Peter required the gift. Tinker Bell did nothing wrong." The prince's jovial appearance returned once more and he laughed.

"You are quite the talkative mortal aren't you?" he asked.

"If you are the prince then shouldn't there be a King or Queen that we should be addressing?" I asked him.

"I will be king one day," he said defensively. "My parents are no longer… with the Council, which leaves me, the prince, in charge until I find the Fairy Queen."

"You forget your brothers and sister," said an older looking girl fairy with shimmering tan wings. "They would take the throne before you if they found spouses first."

"I am well aware of the laws, Amethyst, but being the oldest, it is my destiny to find the Great Fairy Queen. You know that!" Prince Sapphire snapped.

"Yes, Sapphire, I also understood the ancient prophecies!" Amethyst responded.

"So why are we here again?" I interjected. The prince's smile returned as he turned to Peter and me.

"We will get along quite well, you and I." the Prince said and he chuckled. Peter took a step forward and took my hand. "Rather protective of your mortal friend aren't you?" the prince asked. "Well you should know that I am not who you should worry about. The Pirates would love to get their hands on a strong young girl like her."

"Pirates?" Peter asked.

"Captain Hook and his crew. Our fairy forces have been able to keep them at bay for a long time but the tide is turning. We aren't strong enough to fight them anymore."

"How can we help?" I asked.

"I'm not sure yet." He replied honestly. "But this is not why I called you here. By coming you have assured that you will stay here forever and the Lost Boys need a father. It has been said that a mortal boy will willingly leave his home to lead them and be their father. You left willingly so we can only hope-"

"I'll do it!" Peter said.

"Great!" the Prince exclaimed. "I will have the outfitter fairies fashion you something that is much more becoming of a Neverland leader. I will also arrange for someone to come teach you to fight with a sword. We will have to throw you a grand ball as well! We have so much to plan and-"

"Wait!" Peter stopped the Prince again. He squeezed my hand that he was still holding and looked at me. "What about Claire?"

"Peter…" I started. This was Peter's dream and I didn't want to ruin it for him.

"The boys will need a mother won't they?" the prince winked.

"Of course!" Peter's excitement reached a peak then. "May we go back and meet them then?"

"Absolutely. Also, Tinker Bell shall be your fairy now, since she found you. Anything you need, she can give you. A grand ball shall also be planned in your honor. You may leave." The prince excused us.


	3. Chapter 3

We returned to normal size and walked back to the tree where the Lost Boys were. We were introduced to all of the Lost Boys on our return as promised. I realized that the boys could not understand Tinker Bell but were fairly good at charades. She would make all sorts of gestures to communicate with the boys. A very skinny Lost Boy named Slightly handed me a bundle of wild flowers.

"For you, mother." He said.

"Thank you, Slightly." I replied. He looked extremely pleased to have my approval.

"Can you play with us now, Father?" a large boy named Tootles asked Peter.

"I would love that!" Peter exclaimed. The boys ran off and commenced an intense round of tag. I hung back and watched.

"Will everyday be like this?" I asked Tinker Bell.

"It can be," she responded. "Many mortals say that they lose track of time while in Neverland. It is quite common." Peter ran over to me.

"Aren't you going to play too?" he asked with his hand outstretched. I took it and we ran off. Hours later, I didn't even realize that it had gotten dark until I stopped running to catch my breath.

"Tag! You're it!" yelled another boy named Pips. I laughed and ran after the nearest Lost Boy.

* * *

Twice a week a kind fairy named Gossan came to teach Peter and I how to sword fight. Gossan was a muscular fairy who didn't look much older than us up close. He had dark auburn hair and mossy green wings. Because of special magic, he was able to appear at our size to help us learn to fight. Peter seemed to already be quite handy with a sword but he was not one for techniques.

"Grip the sword firmly in both hands," Gossan attempted to remind Peter. Peter just laughed and continued to practice maneuvers with the sword in just his right hand. It had become clear through our lessons that while Gossan was stronger than Peter, Peter was much more agile and lighter on his feet. He was also able to fly around as he fought which helped him keep up with Gossan. This was possible with some help from Tinker Bell. Peter and I had learned to fly while fighting and after a couple weeks, both of us gained the ability to fly on our own with very little pixie dust. The more we practiced, the less pixie dust we needed.

"Claire, are you paying attention?" Gossan politely asked. I sheepishly shook my head. He demonstrated the new maneuver that he was teaching us again which Peter and I picked up with ease.

"Very good!" he praised. "Now that you have mastered many of the basics, I would like you both to start sparring on a regular basis. It will make you both stronger fighters and will help you work together." We exchanged a glance and nodded. Gossan handed us swords that were dull and a bit more flexible so that we couldn't injure each other.

We entered the center of the ring that Gossan drew on the ground. We raised our swords and saluted each other. For a few moments I felt uneasy because of the serious atmosphere that seemed to take over but it subsided when Peter smiled.

"You're toast, Claire!" he teased.

"You wish," I kidded back.

The ever-energetic Peter took the first swing. Expecting his eagerness, I swung to parry his blow. He swung across and I ducked. I swung through at his feet and he jumped to dodge my sword. When he landed he stumbled back a few steps. I took advantage of the few seconds it took him to recover to somersault backwards from the squatting position that I was in.

I stood in time to parry his next blow and retaliated with one of my own. He jabbed his sword straight towards me, so I spun away to avoid the impact. Feeling daring, I swung my sword out as I spun but Peter held his sword up to block it.

Suddenly, with a mischievous look on his face, Peter touched off the ground and hovered a few feet in the air. I grinned back at him and touched off as well. We flew higher into the air with each swing until I had Peter cornered in between two tree branches.

"Gotcha!" I yelled. He smiled at me and then dropped like a stone. I looked down but he was gone. I realized then that we had flown really high up. I got nervous and was about to fly down after him, when I felt someone push me from behind. I turned around in time for Peter to push my back against the tree that I had just pinned him against. He held his sword against my throat softly.

"Gotcha!" he mimicked. Then we both burst out laughing. We lost altitude as we both fought to control our laughter. When I reached the ground, I was laughing so hard that I was leaning on Peter to keep myself upright. He was doing the same.

"That was very impressive," Gossan said as we calmed down. "You two fight extraordinarily well."

"Thank you," Peter and I both said at the same time. This sent us off into another laughing fit.

"You're welcome. Well, I think that that was good for today. I'll see you two next week." With that, he flew back into the forest.

"Can we play now?" asked Tootles from the window of our tree house.

"Of course," yelled Peter back. The tree exploded as all of the Lost Boys ran out to join us in a game of Hide and Seek.

It went on for days and weeks like that. We would all play and laugh until the sun went down and then we would play in the dark. Peter and I jousted daily and continued our lessons. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were always something we imagined was there and then it would appear. We never needed anything that we didn't have or couldn't dream up. Life was amazing.

* * *

"We have to get you ready for the ball." Tinker Bell said smiling. I nodded as she led me into the room that was now mine. It had been a month since Peter and I arrived in Neverland and a ball was planned by the Fairy Council to celebrate how well we were doing.

"I think that I have picked out something that you will like." She said before flying into a cabinet and returning with a beautiful green dress. It was the color of fresh grass and shined like silk. It fit perfectly, too. The long sleeves reached my wrists and the hem just reached my knees. I twirled around and the skirt flew out around me. It was absolutely stunning and I was afraid to walk through the forest in this dress.

"The Fairy Council has arranged an escort for you and Peter," Tinker Bell said almost reading my mind. I smiled at her and thanked her for the dress.

I walked back into the large entry room and all of the Lost Boys stood and gawked.

"Mother is very pretty," said Tootles. I smiled and thanked him. The Boys went on complimenting me until a boy named Curly spoke up.

"Father is here." Everyone turned to look at Peter as he walked in. He looked very handsome in a green shirt, which was the same color as my dress, and a pair of black trousers. It wasn't nearly something that an adult in London would wear but it made him almost look older. His eyes lit up when he saw me.

"Isn't Mother pretty?" a boy called Nibs asked.

"Yes she is," Peter agreed in a breathless tone that almost made me blush.

"You don't look so bad yourself," I told him and he laughed. He offered his arm and we walked out to the awaiting carriage together.

"You remind me of my mother," Peter said as we reached the carriage. "She was pretty too." My heart sunk a little in my chest at his words. I knew he couldn't have meant what I thought he meant. I couldn't help but feel a bit of disappointment at his comparison. My emotions must have shown on my face because Peter stopped. "Did I do something wrong?" he asked me.

"No, I'm just nervous is all," I told him. I decided that I would forget the whole thing. I couldn't ruin this for him.


	4. Chapter 4

We arrived at the ball as it was getting dark. Tink shrunk us again and escorted us back into the room that we were in before. The room had been completely transformed. Now a shining dance floor sat in the middle of the room and tables of food and drinks were everywhere. A happy tune was in the air that a small band of fairies was playing in the back of the hall. Prince Sapphire greeted us at the door. He was dressed in a handsome suit that matched the blue sheen of his wings and was trimmed in gold.

"You both look fantastic. Enjoy the food and dancing. It is all for you."

"Thank you," I said to him. He took my hand and twirled me in a circle.

"You look beautiful, Claire," he said to me. I thanked him again and dismissed myself and Peter, who looked fit to kill.

"You know he is just being nice," I told Peter when we were out of earshot. He shrugged.

"I just don't trust him." I shook my head and laughed. We sat down at a table and ate some of the delicious food laid out for us. A young fairy with pale yellow wings approached us after a time.

"Care to dance?" he asked me. I agreed to a dance and we made our way to the dance floor. He turned me around and took me by the waist. We joined hands and danced to the lively music. It turned out that he was a wonderfully graceful dancer. When the song ended, he bowed away and another boy fairy stepped into his place.

In the crowd of dancers I saw Peter dancing with the fairy known as Amethyst. He looked like he was enjoying himself and, although I wished it was me he was dancing with, I was glad that he was happy.

All of a sudden, my dance partner stopped abruptly and bowed away. I turned around to see Prince Sapphire.

"Please allow me a dance?" he asked. I nodded warily and he took my hand. "You really do look beautiful."

"Thank you, but I don't want your flattery," I said. He looked suddenly hurt.

"Of course not," he said has he shook his head. "But listen, I'm not sure that you realize, your friend, the one that you are so stuck after; he will never learn to love you. If he doesn't already feel that emotion, he may never feel it. It is a condition of his Neverland citizenship, just as it is yours," he told me.

"Do you think that's all I care about?" I asked. I tried to turn away from him but he tightened his hold on my hand.

"No, but I think you care more about him than he will ever care about you. I can see it in your eyes. I just don't want you to be hurt."

"Well, thank you for your concern," I said hostilely. "But, I'm fine. I can handle myself." I turned to leave again but he caught my arm.

"I'm sorry if I have offended you." He apologized. "You are just so new to Neverland. It's hard to adjust, some mortals take years." I nodded.

"I understand. This is all a bit new." I admitted. He smiled warmly at me and he led me closer to the middle of the dance floor. The song changed to a light and happy waltz like the ones my father had once enjoyed. Prince Sapphire held me close and we began to dance. I could feel the music in my bones as we twirled and spun. He twirled me around once, twice, I felt like I was flying. The two of us gracefully glided across the dance floor in perfect harmony.

I suddenly became aware that everyone else had stopped dancing and was watching us. I looked up at Prince Sapphire and he was smiling wider than ever. He pulled me closer to him and I lost myself again to the music. Together we danced both gracefully and with extreme skill. When the song ended, I was out of breath.

"I wish to give you a thimble," the Prince told me. It was such a strange request. I thought of the sewing thimbles that gathered dust on my mother's dresser. Surely he did not intent to hand me a small piece of metal.

He surprised me when he took my hand in his, bent over and kissed it. I felt heat rise to my cheeks as his warm soft lips grazed the back of my hand. We bowed to each other and I went quickly to resume the seat I had originally been sitting in. I tried hard not to think about how magical dancing with Prince Sapphire felt.

After resting for a few songs, I finally caught a glimpse of Peter. He was talking to a large group of fairies and they were all laughing at something that he had said. He caught my gaze and excused himself.

"You up to one more dance?" he asked me when he had finally approached.

"Sure, I think I'll live." He smiled in his cute, 11 year old way and took my hand. When we began to dance, I became oblivious to anything but us. He was a lovely dancer and he looked just as beautiful. It felt so right to be dancing in his arms. I thought about what the Prince had told me but I decided that I didn't care because Peter, and this moment, were perfect just the way they were now.

"So these are the new mortals," came a booming voice from behind us. I turned and saw a vicious looking man with curly black hair and a wicked mustache. He was dressed in a bright red velvet suit but was obviously not a fairy. He smiled at us. "Pretty little things. Clearly this boy and his friend couldn't lead the Lost Boys. This must be a joke!" Peter moved to stand in front of me as he took my hand. He was cute when he was being protective. Hook seemed to take note of this gesture.

"What are you doing here, Hook?" Prince Sapphire demanded.

"Simply scoping out the competition. Surely you don't think that I'm incapable of finding a fairy to get me into one of your 'parties', do you?"

"We don't doubt you at all, Hook, but this party isn't quite your crowd." Amethyst said. Avoiding trouble as much as we could, Peter and I started towards the door. This wasn't our war to fight.

"You're not leaving so soon are you?" asked Hook who was suddenly next to us. He began advancing closer. A fairy from the crowd threw Peter a sword and he pointed it at Captain Hook.

"That's how you want to play it, huh?" Hook asked Peter. "Alright then." He seemed to reach for his own sword before his hands suddenly changed direction and clasped around my throat. He pushed me up against the wall allowing me just enough air to breathe.

"Let her go!" Peter yelled.

"And why would I do that?" Hook asked and he tightened his grip. I yelped inadvertently. I pushed my left foot against a ledge high in the wooden wall behind me and pushed my right foot into his torso. He let go and stumbled backward. "You would make a good pirate, my girl." He said in a deep tone that made me sick. His grip had left a bruise like pain in my neck which, as expected, vanished as quickly as I felt it.

Then, Peter swung his sword at Captain Hook and connected with his upper arm. Hook grabbed his sword with his uninjured arm and swung towards Peter hitting another fairy in the side instead. The fairy fell over but stood back up a moment later with no sign of injury except his torn shirt. Hook swung at Peter again. Peter parried the blow with his newly acquired skill. They fought on until Peter had Hook cornered.

"Leave now!" Peter commanded.

"I will kill you next time, Peter Pan," Hook said and then he exited the hall.

"Are you ok?" Peter asked as he rushed over to me.

"I'm fine," I told him. "Where did you learn to fight like that?" I winked at him.

"I don't know," he replied as he elbowed me in the side.

"He has finally arrived," Prince Sapphire unexpectedly announced and the whole Fairy Council bowed before Peter. Upon rising, the Prince said, "We have waited a long time for you, Peter Pan."

"Wait, I don't understand, what am I?" Peter suddenly sounded insecure and scared.

"It is an ancient Fairy Tale that a boy named Peter Pan will come to Neverland and will destroy Captain Hook to free Neverland! You are Peter Pan!" The Prince was ecstatic.

"Wait, so I have to _kill_ him?" Peter asked. Prince Sapphire thought for a moment.

"I'm not sure, it is said that you will know what to do."


	5. Chapter 5

Peter had been in his room for a few hours before I bucked up the courage to go to him. He sat on his bed crying.

"Peter, why are you crying?" I asked. He looked up and suddenly jumped into a standing position.

"I'm not crying." He insisted as he rubbed his eyes. I knew better than to provoke him so I sat down on his bed.

"I wouldn't blame you. It's a lot to take in." He finally sighed and sat down next to me. He put his head in his hands and raked his curly blonde hair.

"Why me?" he asked more to himself than to me. "I'm not special. I just didn't want to grow up."

"Well that's it then," I replied. He looked confused. "Everyone here, with the exception of the fairies, is here because they were brought here. You wanted to be here. Maybe it's in your request to stay young that you are more important."

He pondered for a moment. "If this is really me…" he stopped as if something was bothering him. "You'll stay and help me right? You won't leave?"

"No, I intend to stay as long as I'm welcome."

"Well then you'll be here forever!" he smiled and then hugged me. When he pulled away, he stopped with our faces inches apart. I could feel his breath on my face. Curiosity got the better of me and I kissed him. It was tentative and slow. His hand cupped my face and we just sat, lips connected, for a few seconds before we broke apart.

"I'm sorry…" I started. The silly grin on his face made me stop.

"What was that?" he asked.

"Apparently a thimble." I recalled the term used by Prince Sapphire. A commotion in the dining room made us both jump. I glanced at Peter one last time before I left to go see what all of the racket was about.

* * *

I got to the dining room to see dishes everywhere.

"Mother, hide!" Slightly shouted. I turned and came face to face with an older fat man. He swung a pan at my head but I ducked and pushed him away. He stumbled backward and in an act that can only be described as pure luck, he fell into a pot and knocked himself out. As another Pirate attacked, I took off running.

I sprinted across the room to the living room as the Pirate failed to get past a few fallen chairs. I then went over to the tied-up Lost Boys and untied the smallest two, a pair of twins named Scratch and Peck. "Hide in the smallest corner you can find and keep Peter out of here," I commanded.

"But Mother," they protested.

"Listen, it's Father that they are after. Let them take me, do you understand?" They nodded and I turned to attract the Pirates attention. "You guys are pretty bad pirates!" I yelled. "Being outsmarted by a girl is kind of sad." They charged me and I slipped toward the door in the opposite direction of the twins.

"We meet again, witty child," came a voice behind me that I knew belonged to Captain Hook. When I turned to face him, he grabbed my wrists and pulled me out toward the door. Fighting was futile now, so I just let him drag me. Outside, some more pirates were waiting and whacked me over the head so that I blacked out.

* * *

I woke to a rocking sensation which I realized was the boat that I was probably on. I went to sit up when I heard voices.

"What do you think the Captain will do to him?" came a scruffy voice.

"Not sure but it won't be pretty," said a deep voice.

"The Captain is not very forgiving, don't you remember Joe? He didn't laugh at the Captain's joke and the Captain shot him clean through and left him in the sea." I stifled a gasp. I knew that Peter would eventually come, though I wished he wouldn't. I just hoped he could take these guys. They may be dumb but these guys weren't small. They walked away to some of their other friends so I used their distraction to shift so that I could see where I was.

Perched up on my elbows, I could see that the ship was large and wooden. It wasn't very ornate but it was definitely a pirate ship out of a story book.

"Enjoy the view?" Hook asked from behind me.

"Should I?" I tried, acting braver than I felt.

"You know, you could become a pirate and live _here_ forever," he offered. It almost sounded sincere.

"Fat chance," I declined. "I'd rather die."

"Oh, don't worry, you will. If you're good, I might even kill you first." He pulled me to my feet by my shoulder. He threw me against the door to the captain's quarters. Two more pirates tied me to a post and gagged me. I kicked at them but it only made them tie me tighter, so I stayed put.

"Brat." One of them spat at me after they had tied me up.

"Don't provoke the bait, Chuck." Hook warned as he waved his gun in the air.

Suddenly a sound like a rooster crow sounded and I saw a shadow fly past the ship's sail. Hook shot a few moments late and put a hole in his sail. Peter flew past Hook at a speed that spun him onto his butt. I chuckled quietly, which the gag in my mouth made quite difficult.

Tinker Bell flew in swiftly, following Peter. Flying from man to man, she poked their noses, plucked their mustaches and caused all sorts of mayhem. I felt the rope around my hands loosen.

"You ok?" Peter asked almost absentmindedly behind me.

"Fine, let's kick some pirate butt." He smiled at me.

"But Hook's mine." Peter handed me a sword and pulled out one of his own. I suddenly noticed his outfit change. He was wearing leaves. It was a trouser set with one strap across his bare chest. A shout from one of the pirates snapped me out of my reverie.

He swung down at me and I slid to the right. He tried to change directions last minute but I blocked it. I fought him as I slowly backed toward the side of the ship. He charged me and I simply stepped aside to allow him to fall right over the edge. Peter and I fought as many pirates overboard as we could but there were too many for us alone.

Tink whistled and the Lost Boys, all armed with swords and clubs, flew onto the boat. It became a much fairer fight from then on and I was even having fun. I swung at a pirate who ducked but lost his balance and fell overboard. Suddenly, a hand caught my wrist.

"Ladies shouldn't fight, silly girl!" Hook laughed. He knocked the sword out of my hand and took hold of me. With one hand he crushed my chest and hands while he held his own sword to my throat. **

"I believe this fight is over," Hook bellowed and made everyone turn to us. A collective gasp rose. "Where are you, Peter Pan?" No answer came. "I guess I get to kill the girl then." He dug the sword into my throat until I felt blood come. He drew it back a few inches and the cut healed itself with the typical stomach pulling feeling. Astonished looks were on everyone's faces.

"What?" Hook asked.

"Her neck healed itself!" exclaimed the fat pirate from the house.

"Don't be silly Smee!" Hook turned me to face him. As he looked at my throat, Peter flew into him, knocking Hook to the ground. Hook recovered quickly and took a swipe at Peter. Peter flew higher up and laughed.

"You are a codfish!" He laughed harder. "You won't fight me yourself!" Hook's face turned blood red and swung at Peter. He let go of the sword in midair and it flew towards me. I saw it too late and it sliced through my side. The impact caused me to fall backwards.

"Claire!" Peter yelled. He started towards me.

"No!" I screamed. "Finish him first!" Peter turned to Hook. With a determination I had never seen before he overtook Hook easily even though Hook still fought back. In one swift movement, he thrust the sword towards Peter's torso. At the same time, Peter swung downward and took Hook's right hand clean off. Hook shrieked.

My vision started to blur as Hook jumped overboard onto a waiting rowboat. Peter was about to go after him when a voice cried out:

"Father! Mother is bleeding!" Then Peter saw me. I smiled weakly at him but something felt wrong. The feeling of a pull in my stomach that would heal the cut never came. Everything was getting darker and further away. I realized that I may actually be dying.

"Peter…" I started. Speaking was suddenly difficult but I had so much to say.

"Shhh…" he said. He brushed his hand through my hair. A shot of pain ripped through my side and I flinched. Peter grabbed onto my shoulders and pulled me into his lap.

The Lost Boys around us knelt and looked at us: the tragedy in front of them.

Tinker Bell flew up to us. "There may be a way to save her!" Tink cried. "Peter, you aren't the only person said to save Neverland. There is another old Fairy Tale that the greatest Fairy Queen will be a mortal who was born a fairy but was accidentally left in the Mortal world. Taking up her birth right as a fairy may save her if she is the Fairy Queen. She already possesses two of the gifts."

"How can she do it?" Peter asked anxiously.

"You have to know that she will be a fairy forever, not the mother of the Lost Boys." Peter hesitated.

"You lose me either way," I told him.

"We have to try," he said holding me tighter as reality continued to dissipate into the air. "At least this way I can see you." He started to cry now and I fought back tears of my own. I felt his hand trace the side of my face. I turned to Tinker Bell.

"What do I have to do?" I asked. Pain shot through me again and I almost blacked out.

"The crown of the Queen, if you are in fact the Fairy Queen, it will transform you." Tink stopped and looked at Peter. "The crown was stolen years ago…" she stopped as hope seemed to drain from her face. Then her face lit up again. "by Captain Hook..."

Desperately, Peter looked around. "Search the ship! It has to be here!" The Lost Boys scattered on deck to find the crown. Tinker Bell flew around helping where she could. Peter looked hopeful but the pain in his eyes was unbearable. It hurt me to know that it was my fault that he was upset.

"Peter," I started, "I once promised you that I would never hurt you. Don't let me hurt you now. Let me go." He shook his head and I saw tears in his eyes.

"No, Claire. Don't think like that. Stay here."

"I love you, Peter," I said suddenly. I looked into his face for an answer. "You needed to know." He began to cry harder.

"Stay, please, you promised," he finally mustered. I felt miserable because there was nothing I could do. The pain ripped into me and I knew that I couldn't hold out much longer. I tensed and shut my eyes tight, hoping to block out the pain.

I felt soft lips on mine, then. I wrapped my arms around Peter's neck wishing I'd never have to go. He pulled me upright and slowly rubbed circles in my back as we kissed. It was a sad kiss and where our first had been sweet, this kiss was desperate but gentle. I pulled back to see Peter's face one last time before I felt everything go numb and my body fell limp in Peter's arms.

"I found it!" a voice yelled. I had no strength left to sit up or even crane my neck to see. I felt cold metal on my forehead. The tingle of dormant power ran through my back and neck but then there was blackness.

* * *

I felt my body leave the ground. It was a slow levitation. I knew I was dead but I still felt my body. Feeling slowly returned to me. I wiggled my toes again and felt my legs dangle in the air. The pain in my side had disappeared completely. My back felt heavy when I regained the feeling there. An extension of my body that could only be described as wings waved in the air. They felt like they had been restricted forever and were finally unbound. I could finally open my eyes and the euphoria faded.

My feet touched down on the wooden deck. I just stood and looked at Peter. He stood up and took a step toward me. He touched my face with his hand as if he didn't believe that I was really there. I didn't believe that I was really there.

"It's really you." Tink interjected. I looked down at my hands which now radiated a sort of unearthly light. I noticed that I had retained my original size.

"I'm still human sized." I noted aloud.

"Perks of being queen?" Tink offered.

"Something like that," said the voice of Prince Sapphire. He was my size, glowing just as I was. "Look, I know you're not too fond of me right now, but you are to be the queen and that makes us…" He stopped and straightened his back. "For the good of all fairies, we must try to make this work." He held out his hand and electricity surged between us when I took it.

"I agree, it would be best." I looked at Peter. "But, there's something that I need to finish first."

"Of course." Prince Sapphire bowed and returned to fairy size as he flew away.

I walked straight to Peter and hugged him. I held onto him as if my life depended on it. Little words were left to be said. I nodded to him and turned away before he could see me cry. I took a few steps away before he spoke: "I love you, you needed to know." I ran back into his arms. I lightly kissed his cheek and then I left.


	6. Chapter 6

I got to the tree that served as the fairy castle before I broke down into tears. I sat by the base of the tree and let everything go. My lack of control caused me to shrink down to fairy size. I curled into a ball and let myself cry. Nothing held me back this time. I wasn't sure how long it took me to cry myself out.

"Claire?" I heard a female voice say. I turned around to see Amethyst.

"Oh, Sweetie!" she said when she saw me. Her show of emotion caused me break down yet again. She didn't hug me or say anything for a long time. She simply sat next to me as I calmed myself down again.

"How did this happen?" I asked but I wasn't sure what exactly I was asking. I had a lot of questions. Why me? Why now? How is this possible? I'd spent weeks in Neverland now and I still believed that it was all a dream. I wished it was a dream. If it was a dream I wouldn't be sitting on the ground, the size of a human hand, crying like a hurt baby.

"It was you all along." It wasn't an answer, it was a statement.

"I guess so."

"Then we have got to get you ready."

"Ready?" I asked.

"For a Ball, my dear! Everyone is expecting to see the new Queen and we can't let them down!" She then held out her hand for me to take. She helped me up and we flew into the hole in the trunk of my new Castle.

The dress they had fitted for me was even more beautiful than the first. It had a sleeveless top the color of gold that sparkled like I had seen fairies sparkle at the last Ball. It was gorgeous and the back stopped just below where my wings were.

"You're a princess now." She smiled reassuringly. "So now you will dress like one." I nodded my understanding.

The shoes she offered were much more mature than the plain black flats that I had been wearing at the last ball. They had a large heel and matched the color of my gown. Amethyst pulled my hair into a curly pony tail and with a few extra accessories, I was ready. Amethyst turned to face me.

"As a princess of the fairy court, I present to you the crown of the Queen." She held the shimmering, gold tiara in her hands. "Since we don't know what type of fairy princess you are the jewels don't have-"

"What type?" I asked. "What do you mean 'type'? Do you mean that there are…"

"Excuse me ladies." A small fairy with familiar pale yellow wings interrupted. "They are waiting for you both downstairs."

"Thank you, Jasper." Amethyst said and she left the room. I took a deep breath and followed.

There is a feeling that you get when you feel like everyone is watching you. You feel thousands of eyes on you at once. Those are typically the moments when I would trip and fall on my face. But I guess being a fairy gave me a sort of grace that I never possessed before and I glided down the stairs as if I were flying.

Prince Sapphire met me at the base of the staircase and offered me his arm which I took. He led me to a table set high above the others. I remembered from the last ball that it was set for the royalty of the Fairy Council. I sat at the place with my name tag on it, between Prince Sapphire and Princess Amethyst. The evening passed with a lot of meeting and greeting of all sorts of fairies.

"Mind if I steal you away?" Prince Sapphire asked. I jumped involuntarily, startled because I didn't see him until now. "I'm sorry I startled you," he apologized. I nodded and as he turned to leave, I followed. When we reached a small nook in a nearby hallway, he stopped and turned to me.

I was suddenly aware of how close his face was to mine. "Claire, I…" he started. He started to lean his face closer to mine but I backed away.

"No, this can't happen." I told him. I backed away further. "This whole thing is too much. You said it yourself, I love Peter. I can't-"

"Don't you see?" he interrupted. "Peter is gone. _We_ are meant to be together. Forget the boy."

"I can't forget him, Sapphire! He is my best friend. We have known each other for so long. It's not like you would understand," I spat at him. My anger suddenly dissipated when I saw the hurt look on Sapphire's face.

"You're right," he admitted. "I don't understand. I've hardly ever met a human in my life, let alone had to coexist with one. Royal Fairies don't mingle with mortals." I shook my head as his eyes found his feet.

"We aren't that different you know," I said. He looked up at me with sudden hope in his eyes. "Humans and Fairies, I mean. Even you and I are the same in many ways. You just have to see it." He nodded his understanding. For a moment, I really did consider letting him kiss me but I just said, "The guests are probably looking for us."

* * *

Days as a fairy did not move as quickly as they did when I was with the Lost Boys. I became terribly homesick, not just for Peter and the Lost Boys but also for my home in London. Say what I might, life with my mother wasn't all bad; after all, she was my mother.

Only the council meetings truly sparked any of my interest. Being a newly crowned princess, I was requested to be at all fairy council meetings. Sapphire never forced me to go; however, I wanted to go. They gave me something to do aside from sitting and looking at the nature around me. Many of the fairies didn't trust me. They knew I wasn't a natural born fairy-or at least not in the way that they were. Many of the female fairies also envied the "situation" between Sapphire and myself.

From the cryptic comments that I had overheard, this Fairy Tale about us was that I was born a fairy but the parents that I had known were, in fact, simply pawns to an evil wizard. Because I failed to take up my birthright as a fairy before I was ten, I became a true mortal. The crown returned my fairy abilities back to me. The only thing about it is that I could not be queen until I was married to a prince and technically Sapphire was my only choice.

He had other siblings: Garnet was younger than Sapphire and Topaz was the youngest brother. Because time worked differently in Neverland, 60 years here was one human year. Sapphire was 12 in human years and Garnet was 10. Topaz was only 5 years old in human years. Because time was so different, however, fairies matured around the age of 5 or 6 in human years. There's also the youngest sister, Rose who was the cutest thing that I'd ever seen and was 3 human years old and there's Amethyst who acted a lot older than her brothers but was actually between Garnet and Topaz at age 8.

"Claire… Claire!" I bolted straight upright at the sound of Amethyst's voice. "The Council is awaiting your opinion!" I hadn't realized that my mind was wandering until now.

"I'm sorry but I'm afraid I don't quite understand the proposition," I said, careful to keep my tone steady.

"There have been traces of the pirates of Captain Hook returning. Obsidian is suggesting that we mount an offensive in case they decide to attack us. The Council recognizes your past altercations with Captain Hook and is looking to you for advice." Garnet filled me in.

"No, we can't 'mount an offensive'," I protested. "It will only provoke him. The last fight anyone had with him was when…" I trailed off realizing where this train of thought was taking me.

"Yes, we are aware that you fought him last. That is why we are asking your advice. See, I told you that bringing the mortal was a bad-"

"Silence!" Sapphire interrupted a fairy named Gabbro with surprising intensity. "Will you please allow the princess to finish?" The dark silver winged fairy turned bright red and bowed to his prince.

"Forgive me, Prince," he groveled to Sapphire as if his life may depend on it. Sapphire nodded to me to continue.

"No, it wasn't me who fought Hook. It was Peter." I shook my head. "Hook left because Peter cut off his hand. If he is returning, he's coming back for Peter Pan, not us."

"Then we let Captain Hook have the boy. We will be safe," Gabbro suggested.

"No!" I screamed from across the giant hall. Everyone suddenly stopped whatever they were doing to look at me. There was a long pause before Sapphire spoke.

"Gabbro, we cannot sacrifice the boy. He is too important. It is our duty to offer protection to him in his battle against Captain Hook; therefore, I propose we bring Peter Pan here to discuss the matter with him. After all, this is his battle, he should have a say in how it is fought." The fairies in the hall all murmured their approval of the plan. I looked at Sapphire sitting next to me.

 _Thank You._ I mouthed to him. He nodded back at me with a small smile.

"Sapphire," Garnet, who was sitting on Sapphire's other side, whispered to his brother. "If the new princess still has feelings for the mortal, isn't it safest that she not be here when he arrives?"

"I'm not sure but the boy will never cooperate if we keep her out." I tried hard not to lose my temper with the two of them. I couldn't believe that they were talking about Peter and I while I was right there! I chose to ignore them, however, eager not to jeopardize my only chance to see Peter in 2 weeks.

After that matter was settled, the Council moved on to more fairy-like ordeals.

"Spring is coming, Sapphire," Amethyst reminded the Prince. "Our Spring fairies need your permission to start the Stages of Spring."

"I'm sorry, but what does that mean exactly?" I asked. Several of the fairies sighed impatiently. I turned to address several Winter and Spring fairies seated to my left. "If I am going to become the Fairy Queen, I'm going to need to know something about your customs, am I not? It is my understanding that the Fairy Queen is meant to participate in many of those customs. If you can't take the time now to help me understand this world that I have been thrust into, then I may never be the Fairy Queen you all wish I was now. Please try to remember that this is not my choice. I was happy with my life before this and now I'm here without a trace of my former life." I paused. "Now what about these Spring rituals?" Everyone seemed pretty stunned before Amethyst smiled at me.

"Well, as you know, we have groups of fairies for each season of the mortal world. These fairies have special abilities: commanding earthly elements, helping flowers bloom and even raising the temperature of the atmosphere," she explained.

"You may have noticed that the seasons come in Stages and not all at once," Sapphire added.

"Of course," I agreed. "So these 'Stages of Spring' are then waves of fairies bringing Spring to the mortal world." I saw many fairies nod at this and I knew that I understood.

"Amethyst, I do believe that it is time to prepare the first Stage of Spring. Send the warmth and growth fairies and keep the flower fairies on deck," Sapphire commanded. After that, the meeting was adjourned.


	7. Chapter 7

I knew that if Peter was coming to the tree palace the next day, there was no way that I would be able to sleep that night. Instead, I wandered the innumerable hallways and attempted to pass the hours. Most fairies lived with their families in other parts of the forest but as I had no fairy family to speak of and I would marry one of the brothers anyway, I lived with the royalty in their palace. I liked the tree castle which I shared with Sapphire and his siblings.

I stumbled across a winding staircase, as I wandered, that seemed to go up for miles. I climbed countless stories until I reached a hole in the tree that led to the outdoors. From this nook, I could see the stars of this magical Neverland. I sat down and drew my knees to my chest.

"It's a great place to think isn't it?" It was Topaz, Sapphire's youngest brother who had just entered the alcove.

"Sure, but I haven't been here long enough to know," I replied. Topaz seemed to know that I didn't mean the hollow of the tree.

"You ought to give it a shot, ya know?" I smiled because Topaz was so young and innocent.

"I suppose that I ought to," I agreed.

"What's it like?" he asked suddenly as he sat down next to me. "Being in love?"

"It's hard to explain," I answered honestly. "It's like magic that you can't fight. It surrounds you and envelops you but you don't mind because it's so amazing."

"Is that why you love Peter Pan? Because you can't fight it?"

"No," I chuckled. "I love him because he is the best friend that I have ever had."

"Oh," he looked away shyly. "I'm sorry." I put my hand on his shoulder.

"Don't be. If this is that way things are meant to work out, then I guess I can't fight it anymore."

"Sapphie will sure be happy about that." Topaz laughed and I nodded.

"I'm sure he will."

"Mind if I join you?" Sapphire surprised us from behind.

"Actually," Topaz stood yawning. "I need some sleep before the big meeting tomorrow."

"Good-night, Topaz. It was nice to talk to you," I said as he left. Sapphire took his place sitting next to me.

"Can't sleep, huh?' he asked and I nodded.

"I'm not sure why, though," I told him.

"You love him and you miss him. It's understandable," he shrugged as he talked.

"I'm just not sure what I think anymore." I was surprised by how honest I was with him. "I will always love Peter, but after weeks without him..."

"You're not sure if you really need him like you used to." I nodded.

"For so long, there's never been a day that we were apart. He was always there. Now I feel like I've grown so much to the point where I can move on."

"Claire…" he started.

"I'll always love him, Sapphire. I…" Suddenly, his lips were on mine. Soft and slow, his lips moved with mine. His hand moved to cup my face and then his other hand grabbed my waist to pull me closer. When he moved his hands to my back, I relaxed into his arms and wrapped mine around his neck to pull myself even closer to him. I felt his tongue flicker over my bottom lip.

I sprang away from him. I was startled by how cold I felt without him holding me. I almost wanted to laugh at the confusion on his face but I was too shaken. I shook my head as I continued to back away from him.

"No," I managed to squeak out. "Sapphire, no, I… I can't… do this… not like this…" and then I ran.

* * *

I woke up extremely early the next morning. I felt completely drained like I usually did after crying myself to sleep. For a moment, I couldn't remember why I would be crying. Then the memory of the past night came flying back to me. I shook my head hard trying to stop the pain that the memory brought with it. When I closed my eyes, I could feel him, his hands on my waist, his lips on mine. It had felt so good, like it was meant to happen. But it couldn't be right. You can't love two people at once.

Unable to get rid of the memory, I decided to clear my head by going for a swim in the pond by the tree. The cool water felt amazing and was great for relaxing. After a time, I found a buoyant lilypad to float on. That was when I heard a carriage drive past. I had nearly forgotten Peter's visit and I flew as fast as I could back to the tree.

Amethyst had left a light blue dress on my bed when I returned. Lying on top of it was a note.

 _Sapphire told me what happened last night. I know you love Peter but, dear, you must marry one of my brothers .I do hope that you will try to keep that in mind the next time Sapphire opens up to you. He is trying to do what he can for Neverland. –Amethyst_

I set the note by my bed and put on the dress. It was short sleeved and form fitting. It was pretty but I was tired of wearing dresses all of the time. I brushed my hair and headed down to the Council room.

I got down just in time to see Peter walk in with his escorts.

"Where is she?" he demanded. I ran straight to him and we embraced for several minutes.

"I missed you," I whispered to him. He squeezed me tighter before we broke apart. Then he took my hand in his.

"Peter Pan," Sapphire started. "We brought you here to discuss the return of Captain Hook with you. It is our understanding that you fought him last."

"Yes… Wait, did you said that he is returning?" Peter questioned.

"We are afraid so," said Amethyst. "Claire is concerned that you are the target." Peter looked at me and I tried my best to communicate what I was thinking without speaking. I knew that Peter wouldn't care about the danger as long as everyone else was okay. I longed to tell him to take care of himself instead.

"What we want to know, Peter, is whether or not we need to mount an offensive against him and his crew," Sapphire articulated.

"An offensive? No, I don't think that would be smart, but we will need a plan," Peter said.

"Then perhaps a private session is in order," Sapphire suggested.

"Now wait," Gabbro shouted. "If we aren't going to fight, then why do you need a private session?"

"Because, Gabbro, it is our responsibility to protect all that live in Neverland. That is how Neverland works, everyone takes care of each other. Surely you would know that," Sapphire reprimanded Gabbro. "Are there any other questions?" A silence followed so Sapphire adjourned the meeting and brought Peter and I into his war chamber.

I had only ever been in the war chamber a couple of times, once when I was wandering through the tree exploring the enormous palace. This was my second "private session" which were only open to Royal Fairies and their guests. It was a small room with a giant map of Neverland on the table in the center. Sapphire's desk was in the corner of the room and next to it sat a giant bookcase. This was one of the few rooms I had found without windows. It was brightly lit, however, by a sky lamp in the center of the room.

"How long do we have?" Peter asked once everyone was inside.

"My group of warrior fairies estimate that his new ship will reach the docks in two weeks," Garnet spoke up.

"That's Garnet, Sapphire's brother," I whispered to Peter.

"He is currently at sea here." Garnet pointed out the section of the sea where Hook was. He wasn't far.

"What are you thinking?" I asked Peter aloud when I saw his face furrowed in contemplation. He walked to the other side of the table towards where Garnet had shown Hook to be.

"If Hook is there and we are here, then he will have to dock in the Bay of the Mermaids." Sapphire nodded. I was surprised at Peter's knowledge of Neverland. "I can see if the mermaids will help us. If we can get them to attack Hook's ship, it should hold him off a bit longer and will leave him with less of a crew."

"That would be helpful, but it won't stop him completely," Sapphire commented.

"No, in order to defeat him, we are going to need more than mermaids. The Indians in the north and the Warlocks from the mountains will probably help but they will have to mobilize quickly."

"Which is why you need the mermaids," Sapphire pointed out and Peter nodded. I couldn't believe my eyes or ears. Peter had turned into a true leader. It was amazing how good he was at planning.

"This is all fine and dandy but none of this is going to help if we don't have a plan," said Garnet. Everyone was silent.

"I've got it!" exclaimed Amethyst. "If the mermaids attack the ship, Hook and his men will be frazzled and scared. They will run off of the boat towards shore attempting to get away. We'll put the Indians in the trees of the forest."

"You're right. It will pick more of them off with a surprise attack," I agreed. "The only problem is by the time they get here," I indicated the forest just beyond the Bay of the Mermaids. "They will be too scattered. Our best bet is to use the Warlocks to gather them up into this clearing here. That way they will be all together." I looked up and everyone was staring at me looking very shocked. "What? You didn't think I could plan too?" I asked.

"I don't think they are staring at you," said a voice that chilled my blood. I turned and came face to face with Captain Hook. I noticed that the hand that Peter had severed was now replaced by a shiny hook.

"Well I guess you really are Captain Hook now," laughed Peter returning to his eleven -year-old adolescence.

"Yes, thanks to you. But I'm not here to kill you quite yet," Hook revealed. "You may have noticed that a member of your royal family is missing." I looked around the room and saw Peter, Sapphire, Garnet, and Amethyst but not…

"Topaz," I heard Sapphire breath behind me.

"Yes, the poor youngest brother. You can have him back, however, in exchange for the new princess." Hook pointed at me.

"What could you possibly want with me?" I asked.

"Let's say I made a deal. You have two days before I kill the little prince," and with that Hook swiftly exited the room. Everyone was still for what seemed like hours.

"I have to go," I thought aloud. "It's the only way."

"No!" yelled Peter. "You are too valuable to sacrifice." Peter said quickly trying to sound dignified.

"Peter's right," Sapphire agreed as he nodded to Peter. "We will just have to hatch a rescue plan." Everyone in the room seemed to be in agreement and before I could argue, Sapphire dismissed everyone. "We will reconvene tomorrow after I go and talk to some of the other leaders." The royal fairies left and I was alone with Peter. He stood on the other side of the table gripping the edge tightly. He seemed to be staring intently at the map.

"I really did miss you," I said to him. He looked up with pain in his eyes.

"Why us?" he asked. "Why did it have to be us?"

"I don't know but it is, Peter. We…" I couldn't find any more words to say.

"I can't do it," whispered Peter. "I already watched you die once, I can't do it again."

"But I can't let Topaz die for my safety." Peter looked back down at the map. I walked over to him and put my hand over his. He looked back up at me and I could see something else was bothering him. He turned his head away from me but I brought my hand up to turn his head back.

"What's wr-"

"Tinker Bell is missing, too," he answered quickly. He was looking me straight in the eyes. "I didn't think too much of it until…" I nodded that I knew what he was thinking.

"And now he wants me too," I added.

"He has something planned and I don't quite understand what it could possibly be."

"Then we will just have to find out," I told him matter-of-factly. He wrapped his arms around me and I could feel him smile.

"Yes we will."

* * *

After Peter had left, I decided to go back to the hole room in the tree to think. It was there that I made a decision. Topaz couldn't die for me, not if I could help it. I was the one who didn't belong in this world and I had already caused so many problems. I just needed some help to make my plan work.

"And you came to me?" asked Gabbro. I'd found his house fairly easily as he lived near the tree castle. His house was the inside of a small bush. It was cozy and small.

"You have never believed that I belonged here. You cannot honestly say that you would rather I stay and Topaz dies."

"I can't go against my Prince," Gabbro reasoned. "Be rational, Princess, it will never work. Captain Hook will never let Topaz go alive whether he has you or not."

"That's why I need your help. If I go, he will let Topaz leave to appease me. I need you to make sure he makes it all the way back," I explained.

"You really have thought this through, haven't you?" I nodded. "And you're sure you want to do this."

"Yes," I replied. "I have to."

"Then if I can't stop you, then I will have to help you."

I thanked him and left to fly back to the palace. I was planning to leave that night but I also knew that when Peter discovered where I was, he would go after me without alerting anyone. My plan would fall apart if anyone did anything rash. I knocked on the door to Sapphire's room. When he opened the door, I walked in quickly. I didn't look at him.

"I'm going to go to him," I told him.

"Claire, you can't. He will kill you," he replied as he moved closer to where I was by the far wall.

"It's me or Topaz and you can't tell me that you'll pick me over your brother." He leaned against the wall when I said this.

"We will rescue him. I promise that he'll be okay." He took my hands in his but I shook my head and pulled my hands away.

"It will never work. I have to do this," I urged him.

"You can't," he replied looking away from me.

"Why not?"

"Because, I've fallen in love with you," he answered. He looked down at his hands and I brought my hand up to the side of his face.

"I know," I whispered.

"I can't lose you." His warm, soft hands cupped my face. "You can't go."

"Sapphire," I started. "I'm going to do this whether you want me to or not. I came to you because I wanted your help and… because I know that you'll come rescue me."

"Then what's the plan?" he asked resignedly.


	8. Chapter 8

I flew out near dusk with Gabbro. I had about an hour before the council meeting when all hell would break loose. I had Gabbro wait in a bird's nest in a tree that bordered the Bay of the Mermaids. When I was far enough away from Gabbro, I willed myself to human height.

Hook was waiting for me when I reached the ship.

"I knew you'd come," he said as he grasped my face and throat in his large calloused hand.

"Where's Topaz?" I asked pulling away from him.

"In good time, my dear."

"No, now or else I leave," I threatened. He thought for a moment.

"Very well, Smee!" The fat pirate came out of the hatch with Topaz in tow. The poor boy fairy walked behind Smee in human size bound by his hands. His brilliant orange wings were also bound. I ran straight to him, took a knife from Smee and cut the ropes. He wrapped his drained arms around me.

"You shouldn't have come," he said weakly. I squeezed him tightly.

"But I did," I whispered back. Smee swiftly pulled Topaz away from me and pushed his exhausted frame towards the woods. I watched as he shrunk and flew towards the woods. I turned and saw Hook draw his gun. In one quick movement, I ran and pushed the gun upward just as he pulled the trigger. The shot rang out but was projected safely into the air. I only hoped that it bought them enough time.

"You little brat!" bellowed Hook before he jammed the gun across my face. I fell to the floor and although my fairy gift of Healing kept a bruise from forming, it couldn't stop the blackness I saw as I passed out.

I woke up to a familiar rocking sensation. I couldn't help but remember the last time I was in this position.

"Claire? Claire, can you hear me?" My vision cleared and I could see a bright light next to me. It was Tinker Bell. She was in a small golden cage. I was locked in a similar cage, in fairy size and my hands were shackled to the bars. The bars looked flimsy so I decided that it might be easy to bust out if I grew to human size. Then I could make sure that Topaz got away safely. I willed myself to grow but instead a jolt of electricity ran up my arms and I blacked out again.

This time, I woke up in the Council room. Sapphire walked past me and I ran to him and hugged him.

"I knew you would save me!" I exclaimed but my arms went right through him and he walked on as if I wasn't there. Amethyst and Garnet passed by me too. No one seemed to note my existence at all, not even Peter.

"As it seems that Claire is running a little late, we will have to begin without her," Sapphire said as he commenced the meeting. All of a sudden, Gabbro burst through the door and, much to my relief, was followed by Topaz who still looked worn and weak.

"I found him in the woods on my way here!" Gabbro informed the shocked Fairy Council.

"But how can it be?" asked Amethyst. "Claire is here. How did you escape?"

"I didn't," Topaz answered as he hung his head. "And she isn't here. Hook has her." A collective gasp rose and Peter ran out the door into the night. As I had asked, Sapphire followed close behind. Garnet and Amethyst led an army of Fairies into the woods after their Prince. Topaz turned to go but Jasper, a familiar servant fairy, stopped him.

"My boy, you are too weak," said Jasper and Topaz nodded and yawned. Then he turned and _saw_ me.

"How can this be? They went after you and you're here. I have to-"

"No!" I said and I reached out to stop him. My hand passed clean through his shoulder and his eyes grew wide as walnuts. "I'm not really here," I said to him.

"How?" asked Topaz as he reached up to try to touch my arm.

"They shackled me with something that keeps me from using my powers so when I tried to grow, I ended up here." He turned away from me then.

"Did he hurt you?" he asked.

"No, I'm fine and you are here," I assured him. He nodded before his face turned pale again.

"You're fading!" he cried. I closed my eyes and opened them up back in my cage.

"Claire, are you okay?" Tink asked.

"I think so," I told her.

"That was really scary, you screamed and then fell limb. I thought you had died!"

"Oh don't worry, the electric shocks are painful but not fatal. Those shackles are made of a special metal that turns your fairy powers into electricity. Pretty neat, huh?" Hook informed us.

"Yeah, real neat," I replied sarcastically. Now that I got a look around, I was in an office of sorts. It was ornate and surrounded by windows. My cage sat next to Tinker Bell's on his desk.

"Cozy, isn't it?" Hook asked.

"Look, you have me, now let Tinker Bell go. Why do you need her?" Hook picked up Tink's cage.

"She's a prize for me. Peter Pan will surely go mad if he loses both of you," explained Captain Hook.

"Well then, it's a good thing that I won't lose them," said Peter as he valiantly flew into the room. He flew into Hook and caused him to drop Tink's cage. It hit the ground and broke open. Tinker Bell flew to help Peter fight as the army of pirates ran in to fight.

Unfortunately, I noticed that Peter was good but he was overpowered by Hook's excess of pirates. They pulled him out of the office and I lost sight of him as Tink flew away.

"I'd guess you'd want to see your best friend die," said Smee cockily. He carried my cage to the deck of the ship. There, I saw Peter being tied up to a pole on the boat. Smee held the cage up to Peter's face.

"You seem to have failed your girlfriend, Peter," Hook jeered.

"I'm so sorry," he said to me. I shook my head and smiled.

"You were perfect," I told him. His confused look lasted only seconds because then I shouted: "Now, Sapphire!" and an onslaught of fairies rushed the ship. Garnet, Amethyst and the warrior fairies flew in human size while the others flanked them at their normal size. The shock caused Smee to drop my cage but it did not break as Tink's had.

Sapphire flew into my vision. He took hold of the shackles and his hands started to glow a heavenly gold. The shackles fell away but the electricity still shocked me. I didn't faint but it did cause me to lose control of my muscles. My body hit the metal bottom of the cage and Sapphire quickly attempted to open the cage.

A huge hand, however, grabbed hold of Sapphire and dragged him away from me. He burst into human size and flew back to me. His now large hands ripped the cage open and I gained enough control over my muscles to grow into human size. I couldn't however do much more than that and he picked me up and set me down by the door to the office.

"I knew you'd come," I told him weakly. He gently kissed my temple and ran off to join the fight. I realized then that I really had fallen for him. As if my life wasn't already complicated enough.

Hands clasped around my mouth and someone dragged me off the side of the boat and onto a lifeboat alongside.

"It's a shame that we have to leave the party so early," Hook said. "But there is someone else who is quite eager to meet you."

"Where's Hook?" I heard Peter yell from the ship. I saw him reach the edge of the boat but it was too late for we were too far away by then.

* * *

Hook shackled my hands again and electricity shocked me but I seemed to be adapting to the shocks because I only lost control of my muscles and, with a lot of concentration, I didn't shrink.

"No sleep?" Hook asked. I realized that my limb body was laying on Hook's lap and as uncomfortable as it was, I couldn't move. I tried to wiggle away with the limbs that I could still command but it was of little use. "Don't worry," he assured me. "We are not far."

When I could move my head a little, I looked around. The lifeboat was being rowed by Smee. Aside from Smee and Hook, I was alone.

"Boss, we've reached the others!" Smee jumped up excitedly. His idiotic move flipped the boat over and I was submerged in water. Thanks to the magic shackles that Hook had so kindly restricted my hands with, I sunk like a rock. Much to my dismay, Hook's bony hand and hook grabbed me and returned me to the surface.

"You can't die today," Hook said as he tied a rope around my waist and unlocked the shackles. The pirates on board hauled me up and over the side. About half way up, I noticed that feeling had returned to my limbs. When I touched down on deck, I immediately sprung up and started to fight. I punched one pirate square in the jaw and turned to the next. This one had a sword but with a quick dodge to the right, he missed me and I was able to swiftly disarm him. I jumped up and knocked two more of them out with a kick to each side. I stayed in the air to avoid a cumbersome pirate who was charging me. He ran into a pole and knocked himself out.

A shoot rang out in the air and it came from the door to the cabin of the ship. I thought it was Hook until I saw a large grisly man step into the light holding a smoking gun.

"Captain Tom Cliffe," I said aloud to the pirate.

"So you know who I am," the captain stated.

"I've read the stories." I had read them at the tree palace. The library was full of old Fairy Tales such as the one of Tom Cliffe. Like all pirates in Neverland, he was an adult that stumbled upon the gate to Neverland. Often they were kids in Neverland who left and grew up. They wanted to return to their childhoods and found ways to return but because they were adults, they were pirates instead of Lost Boys.

Tom Cliffe was once in the position that Peter is in now, father of the Lost Boys. He left to return to his girlfriend and years later, after she left him, he found some pixie dust that he had saved in his room. He used it to return to Neverland but found that he was not welcome with the Lost Boys. He joined together the first band of pirates: The Crimson Crew. Very few people know the story of the Crimson Crew. They keep to themselves enjoying an eternity of adulthood.

"Good, then we can skip introductions. We have a long journey ahead of us." He left back into his office and motioned for me to follow him. I thought briefly about running and diving off the side of the boat but a quick look around told me that I was far from any form of land. Even flying wouldn't get me far enough. I followed him into his office and he closed the door.

"So where are you taking me?" I asked.

"To a good friend of mine," he answered. "He is most interested in meeting you."

"Then he should have come to see me where I was," I replied hostilely.

"Oh, that would have been quite difficult, you see, he lives rather far away. Don't worry, though. You will meet him in good time."

"Well can I leave now? I can't seem to recall sleeping for a long time and I don't think my magic will keep me this size much longer." He nodded and opened a small door in the wall of his office. It was only big enough for a fairy to fit through so I shrunk and flew into the small cavity.

The room he had offered was a well-furnished room of fairy-sized chairs and a bed. It was quaint and roomy, even though it was a jail cell. I fell asleep as soon as I laid down on the bed.


	9. Chapter 9

Light flooded into the room when Tom opened the door early the next morning.

"Good morning, Princess," he said sweetly. "Breakfast is on the deck."

I saw that there were no clothes in the room I was in but a human sized dress was on Tom's desk. I grew to human size, locked the door, and changed into a pink dress. It was form fitting and uncomfortable so I took it off and put on some pirate trousers and a top that was hanging up in a dresser. It was my size but I couldn't help but feel like it wasn't meant for me. I opened the door to a group of laughing pirates all pouring over eggs and bacon.

"Nice of you to join us," one of them greeted me. He had a black eye and I couldn't help but feel like it was my fault.

"Even Princesses eat," I told him and sat down at their table.

"None of the ones I've ever met, my name's Frank." I shook his hand.

"I'm Joe and this is my brother Carl," introduced another of the pirates.

"Nice to meet you. So tell me, does anyone die on this ship?" I wondered if all ship captains were as mean as Hook to their men.

"Naw, Tom's vicious looking but he's a kind soul at heart. But I'll bet you could kill a few of us if you wanted." I laughed but then I realized that I had never mentioned Captain Tom at all. "I read your mind," he said, answering my unasked question again. I looked at him and could see the complete honesty in his gaze. I could also tell that he was challenging me so I decided to challenge him in return.

I flicked my wrist as if I were striking a match. Instantly, fire appeared in my hand. It was a trick I had picked up from a fire fairy I had met. He had insisted that only fire fairies could do it and he was really shocked when I could do it too. I saw the same shocked look again on all of these pirates' faces. Only Frank seemed unphased by my ability.

"Impressive," he said. "But perhaps you shouldn't have given away your trick before you did it." I laughed and closed my mind. I had read about mind-readers and how to avoid them reading your mind. This time I brought some of the water in my cup out and levitated it between my fingers. Much to my satisfaction, Frank's face bore immense surprise.

"I've had a lot of time on my hands," I told the crew. Joe and Carl shook their heads incredulously.

"Father, why is the prisoner wearing my clothes?" asked a male person behind me. The surprise of it caused me to let go of my hold on the water. I turned to face the boy who had spoken. He looked to be my human height and age. He had the long black hair of the captain and haunting green eyes. He wore an outfit similar to mine but strapped to his back was a large sword.

"I noticed, Jonathan," Captain Tom replied.

"But why?" Jonathan asked. "She's soiling my favorite trousers!" The whiny pirate ran straight to his father's side and pleaded.

"Oh, won't you shut up?" the captain yelled at his son. The pirates and I laughed as Jonathan stomped off into his cabin.

"The captain's son is quite the whiner," Frank noted aloud. I laughed in response.

"Well, I better be going," I said cheerfully as I left the table. I went back to the little alcove in Tom's office. I had something I wanted to desperately try.

* * *

When I shrunk down and entered the room, I sat down on the bed. I crossed my legs and closed my eyes and concentrated on the one thing I was sure about: Topaz was at the tree palace. In case it did work, I knew he would be there and would know what was going on. With my eyes shut, I willed myself to go back to the palace.

I opened my eyes and was staring straight at Topaz. His shocked look was enough to tell me it had worked.

"How? Where?..." he trailed off a he indecisively attempted to figure out what to say to me.

"I wish I knew," I told him. "But it worked." He nodded and tried to hug me. Like before, his arms went right through me but this time I could almost feel them. We both shrugged.

"Would you like to see everyone else?"

"Of course, but I don't know if they will be able to see me."

"Worth a shot," he offered and he turned towards the war chambers.

When Topaz had said everyone, he meant everyone. Peter, Sapphire, Amethyst, Garnet and Tinker Bell all surrounded the map of Neverland.

"They haven't left this room in a couple of days," Topaz said to me. Amethyst looked up at him.

"What did you say, Sweetie?" she asked.

"Oh, nothing. I was talking to Claire." He gestured to where I was but wasn't. Everyone's heads shot up and looked at him. Peter and Sapphire's eyes held so much hope that faded immediately when they saw I wasn't there. Their pained expressions made my heart hurt. No one spoke for a moment probably because they were still trying to figure out what Topaz meant. Amethyst walked over and hugged Topaz.

"Sweetie, Hook has Claire. Don't worry we will get her back," she said soothingly.

"Actually, Tom Cliffe has me now," I interjected.

"She said that Tom Cliffe has her now," Topaz informed everyone. Garnet gave a snort of disbelief.

"Tom Cliffe hasn't been heard from in years. What could he possibly want with Claire?" Topaz looked at me for an answer.

"I don't know. He said he had a friend who wanted to meet me."

"She said she doesn't know. Some friend of his wants to meet her," he relayed.

"And where does Claire say she he has her?" Garnet asked, still in disbelief. I shrugged.

"She doesn't know."

"He's delusional," Garnet said. "The boy is too ragged to think straight."

"No! I'm fine," Topaz insisted. "She's here. You just can't see her because she can only appear to one person!" Garnet made a move to grab Topaz and I didn't want them to attack Topaz because they though he was crazy. I decided to do something crazy. I flicked my wrist again as I had on the ship only an hour or so ago, and fire appeared in my hand. Everyone stood still staring at the fire.

"Where'd you learn to do that?" Topaz asked me.

"I've had some time on my hands," I replied and Topaz smiled back at me.

"Claire?" Peter said as he walked to the suspended fire. "Is it really you?" Since the fire was the only thing they could see, I bobbed it up and down in response. Unfortunately my little trick was draining my power and I was starting to lose my grip. This time I could feel myself fading.

"Tell them I said I'll be back," I said to Topaz.

"Claire said she'll…" and I woke up back in my room on the ship.


	10. Chapter 10

The next day, I decided to try again. This time I thought of Peter as I closed my eyes. I was surprised that when I opened my eyes, I was in the Lost Boy's house.

"Father," Tootles started. "Can we play outside today? You have been very sad for days now."

"You guys go ahead," Peter responded.

"I'll play!" I exclaimed expecting no one but Peter to hear me.

"Mother!" yelled Slightly as he ran up to hug me. His tiny arms actually managed to make contact with my glowing form. Many of the other Lost Boys did the same. There were only a few who seemed completely confused. Peter jumped out of his chair and stood in front of me.

"I can't believe it," he said.

"Neither can I." I then turned my attention to Tootles who had suggested playing. "So what shall we play? I don't have much time you know." Immediately a chorus rang up of Lost Boys asking to play their favorite games. In the ruckus, Peter and I were able to discern that the majority wanted to play Tag.

"You're it!" I shouted as I hit Peter on the shoulder. Then everyone scattered. Peter tagged Tootles who tapped Slightly on the shoulder as he fell into a giant hole. Slightly tagged Peck who happened to run into me as I was running away. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Peter run past me. I took off in his direction and managed to tackle him to the ground. The second we hit the ground we were laughing hysterically. Peter was grinning like mad but the grin faded as I felt myself start to fade.

"I'm going to find you," he said. Then he hugged me tight to his chest and I reappeared in my room on the ship.

The next time I left I went back to the tree palace. Garnet wanted to know what I knew about our destination. Sapphire just wanted to make sure that I was okay. Topaz was worried about me too. He didn't show it, though because he didn't want his older brothers to think he was weak. One night, however, when I came he let me in on the secret.

About a week after my first visit, Amethyst did some research and found that I possessed the power send my spirit to them. It was an ancient power that hadn't been seen in centuries. I also had her research why I could control several different elements.

"Remember when I said we didn't know yet what kind of fairy you are?" she asked me one day.

"Yes," I answered. "But you told me that fairies can only be one type."

"I did but every once in a while there is a break in the rules. For example some fairies will gain no powers just the fairy gifts."

"Does that happen often?"

"Well, I didn't used to think so, until," she paused and tears welled up in her eyes. "You can't tell anyone." I nodded my understanding. "Garnet was born without powers. My parents believed that it was caused by an evil warlock. They never caught him, though." By this point she was sobbing. I gave her a hug which she seemed grateful to return.

"I'm so sorry," was all I could think of to say. She wiped her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Anyway, our research team believes that you have several different powers. They have come to the conclusion that there's more to you then just being a fairy Princess. That's why you were taken away from here when you were young."

* * *

After about a month at sea, Frank finally called,

"Land Ho!"

Suddenly, the deck was ablaze with activity. Pirates all around were running to get things done before we reached the shore.

"How long until we land?" I asked Captain Tom.

"About an hour," he replied. Then he walked over to Carl and some other pirates to give them some instructions. I ran back to my room and used my powers to contact Peter and the others.

I phased into the war chamber, as I had every time I came. Topaz greeted me.

"Claire!" he exclaimed. Everyone's heads turned to me. Peter turned to give me a huge grin.

"We've reached land," I informed them. Sapphire looked down at the map and began to mutter aloud. He finally stopped after a few moments and looked at me.

"We've been tracking your updates and we believe that you are landing right about here," he said pointing to an island on the far end of the map. It was labeled _Captor's Cove_.

"Sapphire," Amethyst started with a warning tone. The way she said it made me feel slightly uneasy.

"What's wrong?" Peter asked.

"Captor's Cove is a sort of Neverland prison," Amethyst hesitantly replied. " It's only meant for those who the fairy court have deemed too dangerous for both this and the mortal world."

"Meaning?" I questioned.

"Meaning no one escapes with their life. There's a spell that was put round the island. Those who enter will never leave." A collective gasp rose and everyone was quiet for what seemed like centuries.

"Claire," Sapphire started. He walked over to me and brushed a hand against my face. About a week ago I started to be able to feel the people I appeared to. Then a calloused hand slipped into mine and Peter was standing next to me looking like he wanted to kill Sapphire. I suddenly felt so completely overwhelmed by everything and I took off. It was really foolish especially since I only had so much time with them but I ran. Before I could reach the door, Topaz stepped in my way. I had noticed that he had been quiet the entire time I was there but didn't think anything of it until he stood in front of me, tears running down his cheeks.

"Topaz,"

"You can't go!" he yelled. "You can't leave. Not now."

"I'm sorry, Topaz," I said to him and he wrapped me in a tight hug. Garnet chose that moment to speak up.

"This is sweet and all but we need to focus on getting the real Claire here."

"You're right," I agreed. "Captain Tom told me we had an hour. But given what you've said, I don't think Tom will risk his whole crew to get me on the island."

"He'll probably send Hook!" Peter exclaimed reverting back to his childish ways. There was no doubt in my mind that Peter loved the idea of losing Hook to this scary island.

"But why does he want you on the island in the first place?" Amethyst asked.

"He said something about me meeting someone. Is there anyone on that island that could have use of me?"

"Not if you're both stuck on the inside," answered Garnet.

"Well we can't let Claire get to the island," Peter said plainly. A moment of silence ensued and I could sense that there was something that no one was telling us.

"We can't make it in time," Sapphire responded finally speaking up. "I'm so sorry," he apologized turning to me.

"It's not your fault. I will be ok," I told all of them. "If I get the chance, I'll contact you later." I then left before anyone could object. I wanted to talk to Tom as soon as I could. I needed to know that what my friends had said was true.

* * *

I grew to human size in Tom's office. I half expected to see the captain making some sort of last minute plans in his office. Instead, sitting in the captain's chair was Jonathan.

"What have you been doing in there?" he asked

"It's none of your business," I replied as I headed to the door. He moved to block my path.

"I'd say it is my business," he said as he slowly backed me towards the wall. "My dad's the captain and he has an interest in your well-being. He wouldn't even let me beat you up for wearing my clothes." I stopped backing up and chuckled.

"You couldn't beat me up if you tried."

"Only because I'm not allowed!" He finally had me pinned to the wall. He put his hands up to the sides of my head. He leaned his head in to kiss me and I slid down to avoid him. This seemed to anger him because when he opened his eyes he punched the banister where I had just been. He chased me to the other side of the room and forced his face upon mine. It was a gruff kind of kiss, his hands were holding my head in place as he forced his tongue into my mouth. I mustered up all of the strength that I had and pushed him away. He stood there in shock just long enough for me to make a break for it. I threw open the door and ran out on deck straight into Frank.

"Hello there Girly!" he said with a smile. I laughed out of shear relief because I knew that Jonathan wouldn't try anything with other pirates around.

"Have you seen Tom?" I asked politely.

"Sure, he's out on the stern," he pointed to the captain's towering form. I made my way with caution dodging out of the way of the occasional pirate running about the deck.

* * *

The waves lapped wildly against the ship as I attempted to reach the stern. There Tom stood, towering over everyone as he dictated jobs to his fellow crew members. Emboldened by the realization that this could be my last day in Neverland, I shouted,

"Captor's Cove, huh?" Tom looked taken aback for a moment before he chuckled. The rest of the crew seemed to freeze in place.

"Looks like someone's done her homework. Yes, our destination is Captor's Cove. At least yours is anyway," he said.

"How will that work?" I asked. "You can't force me to go anywhere."

"Oh, but I can. You see, you won't be alone."

"And I expect you will be accompanying me then?"

"Naturally," he replied.

"How do you expect to return to your ship?" Curiosity started to take control. Tom seemed to contemplate his response before we were interrupted by a crew member.

"Captain, the boat is ready!" he exclaimed.

"Excellent." Tom snapped his fingers and instantly five or six large crew members were upon me, tying my hands and feet together with a vigorous force.

"Sorry sweetie," I heard Frank whisper to me as I was lead to the life boat that would take us to shore.

Once we reached the beach, only Tom left the boat, dragging me unwillingly behind. As if to prove that I was the loser in this scenario, he physically threw me a few feet across the beach. I literally felt myself cross some sort of semi-permeable barrier and I knew it was over. I was on the island.


	11. Chapter 11

The captain grabbed me by the arm and started pulling me through the forest. It wasn't a dense forest but I still stumbled on a few roots as he dragged me forward. I wasn't sure where he was leading me, but I knew it wasn't good. I couldn't think of anything to say so I kept my mouth shut as we trudged on.

It wasn't long before we reached a clearing. Tom stopped and looked around. He seemed to be waiting for something. _Or someone._ I thought.

"Why hello, my dear," a voice sneered from behind me. I fought the urge to turn and look at him. I'm not sure why I didn't turn but something told me not to look. I heard footsteps behind me that started to wind their way around me. I persisted in looking straight ahead. I focused on a thin tree in front of me.

"Are you afraid of me?" the voice asked. I knew that he was prompting me. Against my better judgment, I turned my head slightly. Not enough to see him, but enough to show him that I cared. I could hear him chortle beside me. It's futile to resist now so I turned around and faced this man.

The face that greeted me looked vaguely familiar. He stood much taller than myself and his bald head shined in small clearing. His eyes changed color from blue to green as I looked at him, trying to figure out where I had seen him before. He wasn't ugly, in fact with hair, he would have been quite eye catching.

"Do you know who I am?" he asked. _Someone from my past,_ I thought.

"No," was my only reply.

"Why don't you think about it?" he asked. A flash of memory passed between my eyes. I saw a couple standing happily over me. They must be my parents but I had never seen them before. Then everything was dark until a flash illuminated this man's face and a wand in his hand. I shook my head vigorously to wake myself up. "We have quite a history, you and I," he said then. I remembered more at that moment. I remembered this man dating my mother, or at least the woman I thought was my mother.

"Charles. Your name is Charles." The man laughed.

"I guess you could call me that," he replied. "Or you could call me Walder the Warlock." I stifled a laugh. What a silly name. He didn't even respond.

"So what do you want with me?" I asked.

"My child, isn't it obvious? I'm stuck here on this island. There's only one person with the power to get off of the island, that's you."

"You're mistaken then," I replied. "There's no way that anyone can get off this island. It was created to withstand even the strongest magic."

"Well then we're stuck here together aren't we?" He sounded so smug that I wanted to smack him. "Take her to the chair!" At that, Tom hauled me over his shoulder and carried me a little further into the woods. He took me to a larger clearing and threw me into a large metal chair. There were all sorts of wires and tubes connected to it and above the chair were a giant glass container. I immediately got up and started to run. The island was small but I could have hid for a decent amount of time. I looked up in time to see a tree branch come up to meet my face.

* * *

I woke up tied to a tree. I was immediately relieved not to be in that chair. My eye was a little swollen but I was otherwise unharmed. It was dark and both Tom and Charles, or Walder, were asleep. I suddenly remembered Sapphire and Peter on a boat coming to get me. They didn't know that it was too late. I closed my eyes and opened them on another boat.

But it wasn't another boat. It was the same boat that I had just gotten off of. From the look of things, my friends had gotten here just after I had and they had seized the boat.

"Where is the prince?" I demanded. Those fairies who knew me look shocked.

"Claire?" Sapphire's voice cut through the tension in the air. Suddenly I was being lifted into the air. When my feet touched the ground, I turned around and hugged Sapphire as hard as I could. Then I did the same with Peter and Amethyst. Garnet just stood and looked at me.

"How long?" Garnet asked.

"Too long," I replied. I didn't want them to feel bad about just how close they had come. Garnet nodded slightly and everyone else's smiles faded.

"Why," Peter started. He put a hand on my shoulder like he used to when he would try to get me to talk on our roof. The feeling of it was too familiar and only reminded me of the life that we had both left. I shrugged it off and immediately regretted it when I saw the hurt look on his face. I just turned away and answered his unspoken question:

"Do you remember Charles? My mom's boyfriend from a long time ago?"

"She wasn't your…" Sapphire started.

"I know, my mother but nonetheless, Peter, do you?" He nodded. "Turns out he wasn't trying to date my mom, he was checking up on me. He's actually some warlock named Walter or something."

"Walder," interjected Amethyst. The atmosphere suddenly felt heavier.

"You know him?" asked Peter. He seemed angry but not quite convincingly. It suddenly clicked for me. It must have been evident on my face because Garnet spoke up then.

"You figured it out didn't you? Yes, Walder took my powers from me. And our parents put Walder on that island. What do you know that we don't?" His hostility was evident but also understandable. It was a touchy subject.

"I didn't know about all of this," Peter said looking from Garnet to me and back again. I was running out of time so I ignored him.

"He says that I can get him off the island, something about my powers being strong enough."

"It's not possible," Amethyst thought aloud. "No one is that powerful. Sure you show some anomalies but this is something else entirely. The most ancient of Neverland powers made this island and only those powers could possibly break its power."

"There's something else, a chair of some sort on the island. Walder is planning something with it." I described it as fast as I could and as I faded away a look of horror came over Amethyst's face.

"Whatever you do, don't get in that chair."

* * *

I didn't, however, have a choice. I woke up in that dumb chair. I struggled to no avail as my hands and legs were bound to the chair.

"About time you woke up," Walder sneered.

"Why wait?" I asked.

"Because I want you to witness your own demise," he answered as if it was a silly question. "Have your friends told you who I am?" I tried to contain my shock. How could he have known about my power? "I'm sure there's something in those books that they've been showing you," he continued. I breathed a small sigh, perhaps he didn't know about my ability to contact the others, after all.

"Sure," I replied. "I think they did mention that an ugly snake of a man inhabited the island. I guess they forgot to mention just how ugly you really were." I knew that I was aggravating him but I needed to buy myself some time to think of a plan. He held his cool rather well.

"Of course your friends would not like me. Just a simple misunderstanding." His smug tone was wavering but he was trying to remain unaffected.

"It must have been some kind of misunderstanding that labeled you a monster." It was my turn to sneer. It worked as a fire lit behind his eyes.

"I am no monster!" he yelled in a rage. He struck me across the face and my cheek throbbed. I couldn't even reach up to touch where his palm had connected with my face because my hands were tied down. I heard Tom snicker a little. If it was working, then I couldn't back out.

"How do you figure that you're not a monster? You've ruined lives, mine, Garnet's, who knows who else. What other than a monster does that?" He hits me again but this time I was not surprised; I was definitely asking for it. In a rage of fury, Walder made his biggest mistake: his raw anger released my bindings for me.

I sprang into action. There was nowhere to run so I had to stand and fight.

"So this is how you want to go down?" Walder asked. He definitely hadn't regained his composure but he was countering as best he could. A tree came flying at me from the right so fast that I had to drop and roll to safety. I decided to try a trick of my own so as the next tree came towards me, I brought a mound of earth up to meet it. I realized that Amethyst was right, all I had to do was imagine something happening and it would happen. "Quite a trick," Walder said through gritted teeth. "They told me you were powerful." This time two trees came at me from either side of my body. Flames leapt from my hands and the trees disintegrated into thin air.

"This is ridiculous!" Tom yelled. I had almost forgotten that he was there. "My crew is waiting for me and you two are playing target practice."

Everything started happening at once. Walder flicked his wand in Tom's direction and Tom's face took on a deep blue color. He dropped to the ground clutching his throat. His naturally golden eyes turned a dark brown and then he went still. I had seen a lot of things in Neverland but I hadn't seen death until that moment. I suddenly felt numb all over. I fell to my knees and fought the overwhelming urge to cry.

"Are you ready to quit now?" Walder asked, his patience gone. I didn't want to do anything. I just knelt on the grass staring at the ground. Walder used his magic to lift me into the chair and, for good measure, rebound my hands and feet. "Now I exact my revenge," he proclaimed.

Then, with a flick of his wand, the bindings on my hands and feet shrunk to be as tight as possible. I felt as though all of the strength in my body was being drawn through my hands and feet. If it was possible, I began to feel weaker than before. Walder just began to laugh and then glow. I could see a stream of florescent light in every color go from above my head to his body. He touched off a little from the ground. Then he upturned his wand to the sky and a beam of red light shot straight into the barrier above us. The draining became more intense and I felt my wings disappearing.

When I could feel that there was nothing left in me, the barrier shattered like glass and rained down on us. I felt a few pieces cut at my face and arms and this time I didn't have the gift of Healing to restore me. I was human, but I was also dying. The bindings fell away as well, practically mocking my weakness.

I didn't care anymore. I should have stayed in the treehouse instead of running off to save Topaz. I never should have let Tom get me this far and I really shouldn't have let Tom die. It was my fault that Walder was angry and I just made it worse. I wanted to cry but I no longer had the strength to.

Suddenly a chorus of buzzing rose and all around me fairies and Lost Boys were poised to attack. I wanted to scream at them to get away. I tried standing but fell immediately to my knees. No one dared to move.

"It's good that you're all here," Walder said to all that were gathered. "So you can all witness the death of your world and the birth of a new one!" He walked forward and grabbed me by the hair. "We will start with the one who kindly gave me the power to kill all of you!"

"No!" Sapphire and Peter screamed in unison. I saw a hand reach out and grab Walder's arm. I recognized the bracelet on his arm. I looked up at Garnet's brave face and smiled. I had an idea.


	12. Chapter 12

I found a strength I never knew that I possessed and kicked Walder's feet out from under him. He fell back more out of surprise than the force of the kick. Following my lead, Amethyst used her powers of plants to grab Walder's hands and feet with vines. A wave of water from Sapphire knocked Walder's wand away from him. Garnet almost grinned as he slammed the suspended warlock across the jaw. I looked around and saw that the entire ordeal was surrounded by Peter and his Lost Boys.

For a moment, it seemed as though it was working. I must have underestimated my own powers. Suddenly, I couldn't breathe and fell to my knees. Something was blocking my windpipes and no air could get in. I looked up at Walder and could see his eyes glowing the same red that his wand had glowed earlier. Sapphire knelt down next to me, his face a flurry of panic.

"Let go of her!" He yelled desperately. Walder laughed even in his situation.

"The girl is useless to you all now. She means nothing to any of you." He turned to Garnet. "You least of all. You envy her powers even now. You've hated her since she arrived." Sapphire tensed beside me but I barely felt it. I was fighting just to breathe.

To everyone's surprise, Garnet punched Walder again square in the jaw. His hold broke and I gasped in as much air as I could. Sapphire immediately checked to make sure I was okay. With his hand on my face, I could barely think straight. His eyes were such a deep blue that I almost lost all sense of reality.

A huge mound of dirt threw Sapphire out of my reach. I stood up to go after him but Amethyst was already there. I caught Peter's eye for a moment but the hurt look in his eyes was almost too much to bear. I looked back at Walder who was smiling wickedly.

Then Amethyst's vines caught fire. A wave of energy blew everyone off their feet and the fairies out of the sky. It radiated from Walder who had taken on a scary red glow.

"It's time to end this!" he proclaimed. Vines much like Amethyst's enclosed everyone's hands and grabbed the fairy-sized fairies by their waists. Everyone was tied down. I looked at Sapphire and Amethyst to my right. Even Sapphire let a little fear reach his eyes. Walder approached us and crouched down.

"You really think that you've won?" I asked.

"Of course I have," he replied. Before I knew what was happening, he had positioned his wand over Sapphire's heart, the red tip glowed against his blue tunic.

"Too bad she'll never love you back," he whispered to Sapphire only loud enough for us to hear it. Sapphire slid slowly to his knees in a silent fade. I had to do something.

I closed my eyes and concentrated on the vines holding my arms. They fell away immediately. I tackled Walder to the ground. By that time, Peter and Garnet had gotten out of their bindings. Peter and I grabbed Walder's arms and we dragged him back to the chair. Tinkerbell flicked her wand towards the machine. The metal wristlets snapped into place and the chair started to glow. I finally saw what had happened to me just a few minutes before.

The same rainbow colored light started to fill the glass chamber above the chair. Then it shot straight at me and I could feel the power returning. I quickly grabbed Garnet's hand and closed my eyes. Some of the power channeled through me and into Garnet. When the feeling had passed, Garnet looked at me with surprise.

"Why did you do that?" he asked.

"It was too much power for just me," I replied with a shrug. He hugged me tightly and, for a moment, I thought he was going to cry.

"Claire, Garnet!" cried Amethyst. She was kneeling beside a very pale Sapphire. I ran and knelt down next to his head. Peter sat down beside me.

"What's wrong?" Garnet asked his brother. It was their sister who answered:

"I'm not sure but Walder whispered something to him before-" she broke off, about to sob.

"It was something about me not loving him," I filled in.

"Wait!" Tinker Bell exclaimed. She tore Sapphire's shirt down the middle and exposed his bare chest. A dark purple poison seemed to be spreading over his heart. "It's the Kiss of Unrequited Love. It spreads until the victim is kissed by whoever they are in love with."

I remembered what he had said before I left to save Topaz and wanted to cry. I was causing him this pain. But I told him that I still loved Peter. I'd always love Peter more than anyone else. He knew me like no one else and I could never betray him like that. I looked down at Sapphire again. His usually tan face was white as snow and his lips had turned a deadly blue color. I reached out to find that his face was as cold as ice.

"Go ahead," Peter said. I looked him in the eye. I expected to see hurt but he held my gaze. His approval was all I needed. I leaned down and captured his lips with mine.

I felt his lips heat up as soon as mine touched them. The color returned to his face and the purple liquid began to fade. He sat up slowly as if expecting to be attacked again. I could feel myself grinning from ear to ear and I could see that Garnet and Amethyst were doing the same. Even Peter looked extremely happy. Sapphire looked at me and immediately took my face in his hands. He hesitated only a moment before kissing me.

It was brief but it was enough to tell me everything that he was thinking. He loved me, and I loved him.

We all flew back together. The whole island ordeal had been rather exhausting for all of the fairies so we stayed in our actual fairy size for the trip. I was amazed that a month-long trip by boat only took a few hours of flying. As much as I wanted a big reunion with everyone, when we got back to the castle, I went straight back to my room and fell asleep.

* * *

I was standing in a field. I felt cold hands on my throat, gruff laughter in my ear. A scratchy moustache scraped my cheek.

"Hello sweetie," Hook's voice startled me even though he was right next to me. His hands started traveling further down my throat to my chest but when I turned, it was Jonathan Cliffe's face that I saw. He had an evil smirk on his face. As his hands reached my chest, I pushed away. I started to run to get away from the captain's perverted son.

I tripped over something and fell onto my face. I got up and looked down at what I had fallen on. Tom's dead eyes looked back up at me. I looked around and gasped at the horror around me. Bodies were lying on the ground everywhere. Sapphire, Peter, Amethyst and even Topaz were among the hundreds of bodies I saw. I fell to my knees and screamed. I screamed as loud as I could, wrapping my arms around me.

"Claire," I heard Sapphire say. Now the dead bodies were talking to me. I closed my eyes tightly and screamed even louder to block out the sound of Sapphire's voice. "Claire!" he yelled again. I opened my eyes-

-and was back in the castle, in my room. Sapphire's deep blue eyes looked into mine, full of concern. He didn't say anything which I was not complaining about. I had to look away though. He shouldn't have to see me cry.

He pushed my chin back so that I'd meet his gaze and kissed me softly on the temple.

I started to talk but there were so many things I wanted to say. Sapphire shushed me.

"Tell me when you're ready," he said soothingly. He pulled me into his arms and just held me for a long time. I suddenly didn't want to be in this enclosed space any longer so, without a word, I got up and lead him to the door. He intertwined our fingers as we walked up the stairs to the alcove where we had once kissed. I sat down on the edge of the opening so my feet dangled over the edge. I let go of his hand so I could look at my own.

"I'm a little kid," I said to him. He shook his head but I stopped him. "No, I am. Before I came here, the worst thing that I'd ever seen was my mother drunk. I came here because Peter wanted me to. I came to follow him because I was just then realizing what we could be. Then we got here and everything seemed perfect. I was such a child. I watched Tom die, Sapphire, right before my eyes. And then you almost died too." I paused to take a deep breath. "What if I had lost you? What if your family had lost you? They would have hated me. I would have hated me."

"You didn't lose me," he tried to offer.

"But I could have. It was my choice to make. Walder left that up to me." I think he finally understood then. I had chosen him over Peter. He suddenly looked slightly wounded.

"If it would make you happy, you could still be with him. I could-"

"No," I interrupted. "No, this was my choice, you were my choice. When I kissed you, it wouldn't have worked if I didn't love you. You know that as well as I do." The beautiful sparkle in his eyes returned but he tried to hide it. Then his brow furrowed and he looked at me hard.

"Then what's bothering you?" he asked.

"So much has happened to me over the past few months. There are things I saw that I shouldn't have, places I went that I shouldn't have been or shouldn't have come back from. Everything that has happened," I paused trying not to cry. I could still see Tom's dead eyes and feel Jonathan's rough hands. "I'm damaged, Sapphire, more than I can possibly explain. I'm not me anymore, just a shell with a dead thing inside. I can't be a queen or a princess if I'm damaged. I just wish I could be the princess you've wanted, the queen your people need." I broke off fighting tears that were just hiding behind my eyes. Life felt heavier than normal.

"You're not damaged," Sapphire said after a time. "Not even a little bit. Sure, you've gone through more than I can possibly imagine but from where I am, all I see is a woman who's better for it." The word "woman" caught me off guard. "You've grown up," he continued. "There's nothing wrong with that. You will be the greatest fairy queen that we've ever had." He stopped and just looked at me. I thought he was waiting for me but the look in his eyes proved that he was struggling with something. "I guess the truth is that I don't mind if you're damaged or if you aren't. I love you, all of you, even the damaged parts."

I couldn't hold out any longer. I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him hard on the mouth. He immediately kissed me back. I wound my hands in his dark hair as we kissed and he pulled me closer by my waist. This time when I felt his tongue brush my lips, I opened them to allow him access. His hands moved up and cupped my face as our tongues battled. Eventually, we needed to breathe. His hands didn't leave my face though for a few minutes. We just sat smiling at each other for a long time.

"I love you too," I finally said. It felt odd admitting it but I was glad that I had. His smile got even bigger and he kissed me again. We spent the night kissing and laughing and just being with each other. I woke up that morning in his arms in our little alcove.


	13. Chapter 13

Epilogue

It took us a month to say our vows. I would have done it the next day but Amethyst wanted to plan it. It took ten maid fairies, Tinker Bell and Amethyst to get my hair just right and to get me into my dress.

The dress was a white ball gown with a sweetheart neckline and no sleeves. The skirt puffed out from my waist and was almost as wide as it was long. The entire dress was embroidered with gold thread and it had a deep blue sash belt. Tinker Bell had picked out a gorgeous necklace and earring set from the mortal world that was gold inlayed with sapphires. It was perfect. My white shoes also had a blue bow on them.

They pulled my long, curly hair back into a high ponytail so that my hair flowed all over my shoulders. They had finally decided that my fairy crown would have one of each type of gemstone in it but I had insisted that the largest one in the front be a sapphire with a garnet and amethyst on either side and a topaz next to the garnet.

"You look fantastic!" Amethyst squealing in excitement.

"Thank you," I replied. The girls all left the room once my makeup was just right. I was left alone for a few moments to catch my breath. I sat down on a large cushion and admired my engagement ring that Sapphire had given me.

He proposed a few days after the nightmare episode. We went walking through the forest just enjoying each other's company. He found a small red rose by the side of the trail. He must have known they were my favorite, the memory made me smile. He picked it up and handed it to me. It opened and inside of it was a small gold ring with a large diamond and small sapphires in it. It was gorgeous and fit perfectly.

"I had a little help with the magic," he confessed a little sheepishly. He straightened up and got down on one knee. "I'm told this is how mortals do it." He cleared his throat and took my hand. "We haven't been together for long but we've been through enough to warrant… What I mean to say is…" The poor boy looked so worried and confused. I knelt down in front of him on both knees.

"Yes," I said plainly. Everyone knew that we had to get married to fulfil some ancient prophecy but nothing said that he had to propose. It made the whole thing loads more romantic. He kissed me until we fell onto the soft grass entangled in each other. Amethyst called me "sister" from that moment on.

The door opened as Peter entered the room. I stood up out of habit and went over to hug my best friend. About a week after we got back, I went to go visit Peter at his treehouse. We talked for a long time but in the end, he was genuinely happy for me. We still loved each other deeply but we weren't in love. We both understood it. Before I left I asked him to be my escort at the wedding. His smile lit up the entire room.

Together we walked down the grand staircase to meet up with the bridesmaids and other bridal party members. Amethyst looked wonderful in her short, light blue dress. It was fairy tradition that the wedding is themed around the groom's wing color but I didn't mind, I loved the color. The great hall was set up for a ball waiting for us to come back inside from our garden ceremony.

The entire fairy council was in attendance along with the Lost Boys and many of the other Neverland leaders. Rose led the way in her adorable flower girl dress and each bridesmaid that walked down the aisle looked prettier than the last. Finally I took Peter's arm and followed Amethyst to the floral arch where Sapphire was waiting for me. He wore a blue tunic shirt and black trousers. His crown was shining gold with a huge sapphire in the front. It looked marvelous in his dark hair and with his blue eyes. His smile was wide as he took my hand from Peter who kissed me on the cheek before leaving to take up his place amongst the crowd. He looked both happy and proud and it warmed my heart.

The rest of the day flew by in a blur and soon the guests were starting to leave. Sapphire and I stood to wish each of them well. First the Indians and then the Mermaid royal family. Before the Warlock leaders left, the greatest among them approached me personally. His eyes had faded long ago but he reached out and took my hand, kissed it and joined it with Sapphire's.

"I want to formally apologize for the suffering that you both endured at the hands of Walder. It was a true travesty but you both showed that you were true leaders. The rest of the warlocks and I are prepared to officially declare you both the true King and Queen of Neverland and all of its inhabitants. The mermaids and Indians agreed, as did your friend in charge of the Lost Boys. All I asked was to be able to tell you officially. Congratulations." He turned and left with the rest of the warlocks in tow.

Peter was the next to leave. He shook Sapphire's hand with that silly grin on his face. He hugged me and spun me around.

"This was a great wedding," he said to us both. We thanked him and he nodded. Then his face got a serious look on it and he turned to Sapphire. "Take care of my best friend," he urged.

"With my life," replied my new husband and they hugged with a deep understanding of each other. It was a beautiful moment. He hugged me once more before he left with the Lost Boys and Tinkerbell.

One by one the few straggling guests left and we were left alone with Garnet, Amethyst and Topaz. Rose had been put to bed a few hours before. We all sat down out of sheer exhaustion from the day's events.

"The wedding was beautiful," complimented Garnet.

"Thank you," Amethyst responded beaming. We all burst oout laughing at that and continued for a long time. When we had all settled down enough to breathe, we just sat in silence enjoying the feeling of being a family.

"I'm really glad you married Sapphie," said Topaz to me. I smiled at him.

"So am I," was my reply. Sapphire took and squeezed my hand under the table. I squeezed back.

"I thought I told you never to call me Sapphie ever again," Sapphire said jokingly to his brother.

"You're not king yet," Topaz shrugged, "so I don't have to listen to you yet!" We all laughed again. It was a marvelous feeling, having a family, belonging. Nothing, however, was a better feeling than the one I felt when I was with Sapphire. It just felt right.

The coronation was witnessed by all of Neverland. We were crowned both rulers of the fairies and of Neverland itself but I never realized how big a deal it was until the actual ceremony. With these crowns, well would rule over Neverland and the nature in the mortal world. The coronation was interesting but the part of it that meant the most to me was the surprise that Sapphire had planned for everyone.

We had said the vows and been given the crowns. Both crowns were simply more ornate versions of the ones we had possessed before. Sapphire stood before everyone looking regal and assertive and spoke to all in attendance.

"My friends, Neverland has never been more blessed to be inhabited with such amazing creatures. Each of you bring something else to make Neverland such a wonderful place. My wife and I are honored to have been given control over all of you. The responsibility is unbelieveable but we will govern to the best of our abilities. It is, however, our wish to give some of this responsibility away so someone we trust so that The ruling in Neverland be considered as fair and impartial as possible. For that reason, Claire and I ask that Peter Pan step forward." Peter and I shared a look of surprise but Peter ascended the steps to stand before his King. Sapphire held out his hand in which a glowing orb of light was levitating.

"Peter Pan, we offer to you the safety of our home and yours. If you accept this, your life will be tied to Neverland. You will drive the day to day activity of the land and everyone will regard you as a ruler of Neverland. Your opinion will always be welcome and you shall never have to fight alone. Will you take this responsibility?" Peter stuck out his hand immediately looking at me briefly before he said.

"I will."

I still visited Peter from time to time. We played with the Lost Boys and talked all day until we absolutely had to part. I treasure those visits even today.

Once I went to the treehouse and Peter wasn't there. Tinkerbell told me that he was off on some adventure in the human world and she hadn't wished to go.

"There's some girl he's meeting there," she told me. "Well, not exactly meeting but he listens to the stories she tells." I felt a little disappointed that Peter was with another girl but it was silly. He wasn't mine anymore so I really couldn't say anything. But then Tink told me something that made me kind of sad.

"It's good, I guess," she confided. "He's closed himself off to any possibility of love ever since you guys got back. He was truly very happy for you and Sapphire but any chance at love that he could possibly have, he's run away. Maybe this girl will be different." I nodded feeling overwhelmingly guilty. It was futile now but I still felt responsible.

"Well let's hope for this girl, then," I said to Tink and she smiled at me. We talked a little longer before I needed to leave. Before I flew away she stopped me.

"When are you due?" she asked. I was startled for a moment, I hadn't told her anything and I'd been very careful to hide it, but somehow she knew.

"Eight months," I replied and she hugged me again before we parted.

After that I didn't see Peter a whole lot. He was away a lot more and I couldn't go many places.

About a year later, I was playing with my son Emerald when Tinkerbell came flying into the castle.

"He brought her here!" she exclaimed frantically.

"Who, Tinkerbell?" I asked.

"They call her Wendy!" she said. "The girl who tells stories." I smiled knowingly.

"Then we will have to see how this plays out."

"You truly are a queen," she told me.

He didn't introduce me to this Wendy until it was official that she was staying with him forever. I never pressed him because I didn't want to jeopardize the progress this brave young heroine was making with him.

I did see her before then, however, once during one of our many fairy balls. He had brought his Wendy along and shown her the castle, from the outside. They had danced together and I could see his heart warming once again. I watched out the window just long enough to see Wendy press him a little too far. He lost his temper and she ran off. I flew out to Peter, pretending to have just noticed him. I grew to his size and sat down next to him.

"How have you been?" I asked him. He shrugged.

"Okay I guess." It was the first time he'd ever seemed unsure. He looked at me hard. "Do you ever wonder what would have happened if we had stayed away?" He asked.

"Yeah," I told him. "I think about it sometimes. But it really is no use, we can't change it. And besides, Neverland needed us, whether we like it or not." He nodded and looked at his hands.

"It could have been us," he said. "Together I mean."

"It could have," I agreed. "In fact it was once. But what happened was supposed to happen." I took and squeezed his hand. "You'll find someone too, I promise." He smiled a little.

"Do you really think so?"

"Absolutely." He bounded off back to the tree house and I flew back to the castle.

"I think this Wendy has been a good influence on him," Sapphire said when I got back.

"I think so too."


End file.
